ROCKUM TRIVIA: BEHIND THE DAMN YANKEES - HIGH ENOUGH SINGLE

By Gino Alache

August 29 2019

(Rockum) - • How the song originated: Blades said in an interview: "I was downstairs at Tommy Shaw's flat in New York City.

We were all sitting around and I'm doing laundry down in the basement, because I had just gotten to his place, and I'm just singing, 'I don't want to hear about it anymore, it's a shame I've got to live without you anymore.' Tommy's like, 'Hey, what's that?' And I said, 'I don't know. Just something I'm singing around with.' 'That sounds great.' So I went upstairs and we started banging around on a piano, and then we switched over to guitars, and then in about a half hour we'd written the whole song 'High Enough.'

So in that case the melody and the words came before anything else. That got us to finish the rest of the song. That spurred us on."

• This was the first single from Damn Yankees, the band included Jack Blades from Night Ranger, Tommy Shaw from Styx, and Ted Nugent.

• Personalities: Ted Nugent is known for his manic energy on stage and highly opinionated personality. In the wrong band, he would be combustible, but Damn Yankees was a good fit.

Blades explains: "Ted is a blast, he is so much fun. I produced Ted's last album. Ted is Ted, man, you don't want to calm any of that down. With the Damn Yankees, that's really fun, because there were no egos there, nobody was trying to outdo the other guy or anything like that.

All we ever wanted to do was be the best that we could be, and we just got together and wrote all those songs, and then got up on stage and started playing, and let Ted do his Ted thing. I wouldn't want Ted to calm down one bit."

According to songwriter and co-lead vocalist Jack Blades:

"'High Enough' was about how you love someone so much and you just don't want to scare them away. And it's like, do I take the next step? And then she freaks out when you go, 'I love you.' And it's like, 'What!?!? I'm outta here!' And you're, 'Wait a minute! Come back!' But then the girl comes back, because in the bridge it's, (singing) 'The next thing I remember I was running back for more.' You know how you get scared at first when you fall in love, and everybody freaks out, and that can't be right. And then you go, Wait a minute, this is great, let's forget about the past. Can you fly me over yesterday? Can you take me high enough to fly me over yesterday?"

Damn Yankees were an American hard rock band formed in 1989 consisting of Tommy Shaw of Styx, Jack Blades of Night Ranger, Ted Nugent of The Amboy Dukes and Michael Cartellone.

Music video

The music video was filmed on location in River Ridge, Louisiana and depicts a young drifter and his girlfriend who commit a series of robberies.

However, their last one appears to have far more serious consequences as they become the targets of a manhunt by the local police. It is implied, but not specifically shown, that the drifter may have committed murder. The girlfriend is captured, but the drifter escapes and is cornered in his home by the police, who shoot the house full of bullets.

The police invade the house, but the drifter's fate is unclear (possibly died during the gunfire). The girlfriend is given the death penalty and at the video's slowing end is being read her last rites by a priest while she is being led out of her cell to the execution chamber.

As the video ends, the priest is revealed to be Ted Nugent.

Lyrics

I don't wanna hear about it anymore
It's a shame I've got to live
without you anymore
There's a fire in my heart
A pounding in my brain
It's driving me crazy
We don't need to talk about it anymore
Yesterday's just a memory
Can we close the door
I just made one mistake
I didn't know what to say
when you called me baby
Don't say goodnight
Say you're gonna stay forever
Oh oo Oh, all the way
Can you take me high enough
To fly me over (fly me over) yesterday
Can you take me high enough
It's never over
Yesterday's just a memory
(yesterday's just a memory and)
I don't want to live without you anymore
Can't you see I'm in misery
And you know for sure
I would live and die for you
And I'd know just what to do
when you call me baby
Don't say goodbye
Say you're gonna stay forever
Oh oo Oh, all the way
Can you take me high enough
Can you fly me over (fly me over) yesterday
Can you take me high enough
It's never over
Yesterday's just a memory, I'm running
I was running for the door
The next thing I remember
I was running back for more
Yeah...
Don't say goodbye
Say you're gonna stay forever
Oh oo Oh, all the way (all the
way, all the way, yeah)
Can you take me high enough
Can you fly me over (fly me over) yesterday
Can you take me high enough
It's never over
Woh oo oh oo oh oo oh
Can you take me high enough
Won't you fly me over (won't you
fly me over) yesterday
Can you take me high enough
It's never over
Woh oo oh oo oh oo oh


Songwriters: Tommy Shaw / Theodore Nugent / Jack Blades
High Enough lyrics © S.I.A.E. Direzione Generale, Round Hill Songs, Figs D Music, Ranch Rock Music, Broadhead Music, Tranquility Base Songs, COPYRIGHT CONTROL (NON-HFA), FIGS. D MUSIC, INC., FIGS. D MUSIC OBO RANCH ROCK MUSIC, WIXEN MUSIC PUBLISHING OBO TRANQUILITY BASE SONGS