During the latest episode of the "Ted Nugent Spirit Campfire" show, legendary rocker Ted Nugent spoke about the possibility of a reunion of the DAMN YANKEES, the supergroup he formed more than three decades ago with Jack Blades, Tommy Shaw and Michael Cartellone. He said (see video below): "Nothing is impossible. I've never said, 'No way. The DAMN YANKEES are never getting back together.' I've never declined it affirmatively. In fact, I've always done just what I think Tom and Jack and Michael have always done, [which] is that we would cherish the opportunity to collide somewhere geographically and unleash the inner DAMN YANKEE beast, because the inner DAMN YANKEE music is a beast… We had nothing but a damn riot together." Shaw has consistently left the door open to a DAMN YANKEES reunion, telling told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" in early June: "Well, we never broke up… We are all still best of friends. [So] who knows? It's hard, because with STYX, we work so much, and to do that [a DAMN YANKEES reunion], it would mean putting [the members of STYX] out of work for a while. So it's a tough one. But every once in a while, we wind up on the same stage." Asked if he feels there is some "unfinished business" with DAMN YANKEES creatively and whether he would like to do a record or a song with the band to "put a button on it," Shaw said: "Well, we can always do more. I don't think you can ever put a 'we're done' button on any of the members of the DAMN YANKEES. Who knows? Never say never. And we haven't said never." DAMN YANKEES formed in 1989 and released two albums, an eponymous debut and the 1992 follow-up "Don't Tread". Hit singles included "Come Again", "High Enough" and "Coming Of Age". DAMN YANKEES has reunited twice since its early-'90s heyday — in 1998 and 2010. In 1999, A&R guru John Kalodner tried to reunite the DAMN YANKEES for a new album for the Portrait Records imprint, but Shaw's commitments to STYX prevented him from taking a major part in the writing and the recording. Kalodner later told Melodic Rock about the aborted effort: "I didn't think it was quite good enough, and at the time with 80's style rock, you'd have to come up with something pretty spectacular. I was disappointed in the record mostly because of Tommy Shaw's non-participation. I say that was probably the greatest problem. Tommy was totally an integral part of it. He was busy with STYX and it was sort of my mistake because I just couldn't control him. It's one of those projects that I failed on. I mean the buck stops here. It lacked the input of Tommy Shaw."
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