Customer Reviews

Essentials

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Damn Yankees did two great CDs in 1990 and '92. It seems to have done something for Tommy Shaw's songwriting...unlike one other reviewer seems to think, Styx has grown into an honest to God ROCK AND ROLL band ande Dennis DeYoung is touring with a full-blown symphony orchestra (not to take anything away from his considerable talent, they just didn't want to be playing "Babe" the rest of their careers, and Lawrence Gowan seems to have injected some adrenaline there...and they all get along, more than you could say seven years ago). This is a good starter kit...but you're best off just getting the two CDs and finding the soundtracks to Nothing But Trouble and Encino Man for the songs "Bonestripper" and "You're Invited But Your Friend Can't Come" (essentially Vince Neil singing with Damn Yankees backing him). That's everything that's been released aside from a live video "Uprising"...go looking and enjoy!

PS: They saved the best track for last..."Silence is Broken" is a very powerful song that will bring chills to anyone that's ever been in any kind of abusive relationship, and needs the courage to stand up and say "enough"...one of Tommy Shaw's finest pieces of work, intense and emotional and has plenty to say. That alone is worth the price of admission!

I would consider myself a "radio" Damn Yankees fan, having only heard their radio hits like, "Don't Tread on Me," and, "High Enough." After hearing this Essentials CD though, I see that there's more than meet's the ear. The only song on here that I can't seem to get into is, "Come Again," but all the others are real rockers for me. From the milder, "Silent is Broken," to the fast and heavy, "Piledriver," this CD never stops! The guitars, vocals, bass, and drums, all rock. I tend to give conservative ratings, so that's why I gave this a 4 out of 5 stars, but otherwise, I would highly recommend it for any other "radio" fans like myself.

This compilation is a pretty good mix of their best songs. I would have bought the original cds instead, but they don't seem to sell "Don't Tread" anymore. They are rereleasing it in May. The nice thing about this compilation is that it made me look at the songs from "Damn Yankees" again and I was surprised to find that I like more songs from it than I had originally had. If you like good rock 'n' roll, buy this disk. If you like it, buy "Don't Tread" in May. It is definitely worth the money. There are some good rockers on it that aren't on "Essentials."

I must say...instead of buying both Damn Yankees CDs...save yourself some $$$$ and buy this compilation instead....all of their best are here..High Enough, Come Again, Where you goin now, Runaway, etc. I definitely recommend this for any "Yankees" fan!!!

I really knew nothing about Damn Yankees until the last several weeks. I stumbled upon them while looking for Styx/Night Ranger/Tommy Shaw/Jack Blades items. I've lived through the rock of the late 70's through the present day and moved away from all of the rock scene for a while in the 90's and some of the first decade of the 2000's. This compilation is an excellent listen; to me a great combination of the band/groups listed above, but yet different allowing for the Ted Nugent 'twist'. Big guitar work, sweeping choruses! The vocal combination of Shaw/Blades (and Nugent) is a great mix. Sweet!

Great stuff, but come on they only had two disks. Just get them both for Pete's sake. To act like this is all you need as some reviewers state makes me wonder how you'll love all of these songs and still wake up feeling good in the morning knowing that you are missing awesome rockers like Uprising, Rock City USA, and Livin This Side of Hell.

If Damn Yankees had a hand in getting Dennis DeYoung fired from Styx, then more power to them.Ted obviously had some influence on Tommy Shaw in the early '90's and it was all for the best.
These guys were the best thing that happened to the pop-happy decade of the Backstreets boys and the like.They rocked even harder live.Now if only we could get live DY cd to go with the overabundance of live Styx!

If Damn Yankees had a hand in getting Dennis DeYoung fired from Styx, then more power to them.Ted obviously had some influence on Tommy Shaw in the early '90's and it was all for the best.
These guys were the best thing that happened to the pop-happy decade of the Backstreets boys and the like.They rocked even harder live.Now if only we could get live DY cd to go with the overabundance of live Styx!

If you already own "Damn Yankees", and "Don't Tread" CD's, there is no need to buy this "Best Of" release. If you don't own either of the CD's, this has all the songs you will need. It would have been nice, (in this compilation), if there was something new that didn't make it to either original CD's. That is why I'm only giving this CD, 3 stars. To bad Ted, Tommy, Jack & Michael didn't give us another release. If or when they ever do, crank up this or either of the only 2 original CD's, and enjoy true American musicians, doing what they do best...playing good solid kick ass rock & roll!

I guess they will put out a greatest hits album for about anybody now. This "supergroup" put out 2 albums and really had only one big hit in "High Enough". It is here and there are a few other good tracks, but nothing to write home about. This is the work that Tommy Shaw did after his first falling out with Dennis DeYoung and it has influenced him ever since. this band is a major reason why STYX is without DeYoung and the joke of the classic rock world today.