"Back in the USSR" (McCartney – November 25, 1968)
The BEATLES (a.k.a., The White Album) – Side 1, Track 1 (2:43)
The BEATLES (a.k.a., The White Album) – Side 1, Track 1 (2:43)
YouTube (McCartney live in St. Petersburg, Russia, 2003)
From Wikipedia, Rolling Stone and About.com –
"Back in the U.S.S.R." is a 1968 song by the Beatles (credited to the songwriting partnership Lennon–McCartney but written by Paul McCartney) which opens the double-disc album The Beatles, also known as the White Album. It segues into the next song on the album, "Dear Prudence".
History –
One of many "White Album" songs written during the band's famous trip to India to study under the guru Maharishi Maheshi Yogi, this song was written sometime in early March 1968 solely by Paul. Beach Boy lead singer Mike Love, who was also studying at the Maharishi's ashram, mentioned a recent attempt by the British government to raise funds from citizens with a campaign entitled "I'm Backing Britain." Love suggested McCartney write a tongue-in-cheek song called "I'm Backing The U.S.S.R." Paul eventually changed the title to "Back In The U.S.S.R.," making it a play on Chuck Berry's 1959 smash "Back In The U.S.A."
Under McCartney's guidance, the song became a clever take on Berry's song, which celebrated life in postwar America; to that end, Paul mirrored Berry's style closely, and even added a bridge which paid homage to the Beach Boys themselves (who had also, in 1962, had a hit with a song called "Surfin' USA," which was modeled closely on another Berry song, "Sweet Little Sixteen"). At the end of the bridge, Paul even makes a clever pun on Ray Charles' "Georgia On My Mind," writing instead about the then-Soviet republic of the same name.
Under McCartney's guidance, the song became a clever take on Berry's song, which celebrated life in postwar America; to that end, Paul mirrored Berry's style closely, and even added a bridge which paid homage to the Beach Boys themselves (who had also, in 1962, had a hit with a song called "Surfin' USA," which was modeled closely on another Berry song, "Sweet Little Sixteen"). At the end of the bridge, Paul even makes a clever pun on Ray Charles' "Georgia On My Mind," writing instead about the then-Soviet republic of the same name.
"Back In The U.S.S.R." was missing only a third verse when McCartney tired of the ashram and returned to London in mid-March. On August 21 of that same year, the song was rehearsed after work was completed on Lennon's "Sexy Sadie," but when Ringo couldn't play a tom-tom fill to Paul's satisfaction, he left, fed up with the infighting, and went to vacation in Sardinia. The next day, the song was laid down in five takes with Paul playing the drums himself, augmented by John on bass and George on guitar. On the 23rd, Paul redid his lead vocals and George overlaid a new bass line which Paul later touched up; both John and George then laid new drum tracks over Paul's original. George then added the guitar solo, and Paul played his own one-note solo over the last verse. Paul then overdubbed his drum part and piano, and the three recorded their Beach Boys-style backing vocals. During mixing, producer George Martin added the opening and closing sound effects: a Viscount aircraft from the EMI sound files, recorded at London's Heathrow Airport.
The song opens and closes with the sounds of a jet aircraft flying overhead and refers to a "dreadful" flight back to the U.S.S.R. from Miami Beach in the United States, on board a B.O.A.C. airplane. Propelled throughout by McCartney's uptempo piano playing and lead guitar riffs, the lyrics tell of the singer's great happiness on returning home, where "the Ukraine girls really knock me out" and the "Moscow girls make me sing and shout" (and are invited to "Come and keep your comrade warm"). He also looks forward to hearing the sound of "balalaikas ringing out".
Paul McCartney wrote this song while the Beatles were in Rishikesh, India, learning Transcendental Meditation. The title of the song is a tribute to Chuck Berry's "Back in the U.S.A." while the chorus and background vocals pay homage to the Beach Boys' "California Girls". Mike Love of the Beach Boys also attended the retreat in Rishikesh at the same time; he has stated in interviews that, in order to make the song sound more like a Beach Boys number, he encouraged McCartney to "talk about the girls all around Russia, the Ukraine and Georgia" in the lyrics. The song also contains a pun on Hoagy Carmichael's and Stuart Gorrell's "Georgia on My Mind". McCartney sings about the female population of the Soviet Republic of Georgia ("and Georgia's always on my mi-mi-mi-mi-mi-mi-mi-mi-mind") right after "the Ukraine girls" and "Moscow girls." McCartney thought that when he listened to the Beach Boys, it sounded like California, so he decided to write a song that "sounded" like the U.S.S.R. The title was inspired in part by the I'm Backing Britain campaign that had been endorsed by British Prime Minister Harold Wilson. It has been suggested that McCartney twisted that into "I'm back in (backin') the U.S.S.R."
In his 1984 interview with Playboy, McCartney said:
I wrote that as a kind of Beach Boys parody. And "Back in the USA" was a Chuck Berry song, so it kinda took off from there. I just liked the idea of Georgia girls and talking about places like the Ukraine as if they were California, you know? It was also hands across the water, which I'm still conscious of. 'Cause they like us out there, even though the bosses in the Kremlin may not. The kids from there do. And that to me is very important for the future of the race.
"Back in the U.S.S.R." was released by Parlophone as a single in the UK in 1976. It featured the song "Twist and Shout" on Side B. It has since been released as a single backed with "Don't Pass Me By".
During the 1960s, the Beatles were officially derided in the USSR as the "belch of Western culture" and in the 1980s McCartney was refused permission to play there. According to The Moscow Times, when McCartney finally got to play the song at his concert in Moscow's Red Square in May 2003 at the age of 60 "the crowd went wild". When asked about the song before the concert McCartney said he had known little about the Soviet Union when he wrote it. "It was a mystical land then," he said. "It's nice to see the reality. I always suspected that people had big hearts. Now I know that's true. Finally we got to do that one here," he said after the song.
In his 1984 interview with Playboy, McCartney said:
I wrote that as a kind of Beach Boys parody. And "Back in the USA" was a Chuck Berry song, so it kinda took off from there. I just liked the idea of Georgia girls and talking about places like the Ukraine as if they were California, you know? It was also hands across the water, which I'm still conscious of. 'Cause they like us out there, even though the bosses in the Kremlin may not. The kids from there do. And that to me is very important for the future of the race.
"Back in the U.S.S.R." was released by Parlophone as a single in the UK in 1976. It featured the song "Twist and Shout" on Side B. It has since been released as a single backed with "Don't Pass Me By".
During the 1960s, the Beatles were officially derided in the USSR as the "belch of Western culture" and in the 1980s McCartney was refused permission to play there. According to The Moscow Times, when McCartney finally got to play the song at his concert in Moscow's Red Square in May 2003 at the age of 60 "the crowd went wild". When asked about the song before the concert McCartney said he had known little about the Soviet Union when he wrote it. "It was a mystical land then," he said. "It's nice to see the reality. I always suspected that people had big hearts. Now I know that's true. Finally we got to do that one here," he said after the song.
Problems in the band –
The White Album sessions allowed the four members to work on separate projects at the same time and, as a result, kept tensions to a minimum. However, tempers flared during the recording session on 22 August 1968, and Ringo Starr walked out and announced that he had quit.
"Back in the U.S.S.R." and "Dear Prudence," the first two tracks of the album, were recorded without Starr, with McCartney primarily responsible for the drum parts. McCartney's drums are most prominent in the mix, but both John Lennon and George Harrison also recorded drum parts for "Back in the U.S.S.R."; these are audible in the left channel of the stereo mix. The Beach Boys played "Back in the U.S.S.R." when Ringo Starr joined them for a live show. It is the only time he is known to have performed the song. However, Starr appeared in the animated song clip shown on The Beatles: Rock Band.
After the other Beatles urged him to return, Starr rejoined the group almost two weeks later on 4 September 1968 when he participated in the filming of a promotional video for "Hey Jude." The other Beatles covered his drum kit in flowers to welcome him back. During a break in the filming of the "Hey Jude" video, Marc Sinden (who appears in the film) recalls Lennon playing a song on his acoustic guitar. "Everyone went 'Wow'... Filming started before we could ask what it was. When it was later released, we realised it was Back in the USSR."
"Back in the U.S.S.R." and "Dear Prudence," the first two tracks of the album, were recorded without Starr, with McCartney primarily responsible for the drum parts. McCartney's drums are most prominent in the mix, but both John Lennon and George Harrison also recorded drum parts for "Back in the U.S.S.R."; these are audible in the left channel of the stereo mix. The Beach Boys played "Back in the U.S.S.R." when Ringo Starr joined them for a live show. It is the only time he is known to have performed the song. However, Starr appeared in the animated song clip shown on The Beatles: Rock Band.
After the other Beatles urged him to return, Starr rejoined the group almost two weeks later on 4 September 1968 when he participated in the filming of a promotional video for "Hey Jude." The other Beatles covered his drum kit in flowers to welcome him back. During a break in the filming of the "Hey Jude" video, Marc Sinden (who appears in the film) recalls Lennon playing a song on his acoustic guitar. "Everyone went 'Wow'... Filming started before we could ask what it was. When it was later released, we realised it was Back in the USSR."
Recording –
Five takes were recorded of the backing track, featuring McCartney on drums, Harrison on electric guitar, and Lennon on Fender Bass VI. Take 5 was chosen as "best". The exact order of overdubs is not clear. McCartney recorded a full drum performance on Track 2, with no other instrumental contributions by Lennon or Harrison. On Track 3, McCartney played bass while Harrison played the Bass VI, sometimes doubling McCartney's bass line and sometimes playing full chords. (This capability was one of the benefits of the Bass VI; it could be played as a bass or as a regular 6-string guitar.) While they were playing their parts, Lennon overdubbed snare on the off-beats for the entire duration of the song without a single deviation or fill. This performance was basically duplicated on Track 1, possibly wiping the original backing track in the process. On Track 4, McCartney contributed a piano performance, while Lennon and Harrison provided more bass and electric guitar. With all four tracks, a reduction was made into Take 6, combining Tracks 1 and 3 into a single track and tracks 3 and 4 into another. On the remaining two tracks, McCartney recorded his lead vocal―double tracked in places―while Lennon and Harrison contributed handclaps and Beach Boys-styled backing vocals.
Takes: 6
Personnel
John Lennon – Backing vocals, bass guitar (1961 Fender Bass VI), handclaps
Paul McCartney – Lead vocals, backing vocals, lead guitar (1965 Epiphone E230TD(V) Casino), bass guitar (1964 Rickenbacker 400IS), piano (1905 Steinway Vertegrand "Mrs. Mills"), drums (Ludwig), handclaps
George Harrison – Backing vocals, rhythm and lead guitars (1968 Fender Rosewood Telecaster), bass guitar (1961 Fender Bass VI), handclaps
Political reception –
Like "Revolution" and "Piggies", "Back in the U.S.S.R." prompted immediate responses from the New Left and Far Right, who claimed the group were "pro-Soviet". As further evidence of the Beatles' supposed "pro-Soviet" sentiments, the John Birch Society magazine cited the song. "Back in the U.S.S.R." shocked many far right conservatives in America, because the song appeared to be praising America's enemy, the North Vietnamese. The line "You don't know how lucky you are boys", left many anti-communist groups speechless.
Trivia –
This is the first Beatles song on which John and George play bass and drums. It's also the only one featuring three bass parts and three drum parts!
The mono mix of this song features a louder piano track but omits it from the section with the guitar solo. It also features a different airplane sound. This was also one of the songs inexplicably given a new stereo mix by George Martin in 1976, when it was re-released on the Rock N' Roll Music collection.
Ringo stayed in Sardinia while the band completed another track, "Dear Prudence," without him. On August 30th, the other members of the band sent Ringo a telegram, calling him the best drummer in the world and professing their love, urging him to return. Ringo came back to London on September 3rd, in time to begin work on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." He returned to find his drum kit covered in flowers and a banner reading "Welcome Home."
Paul has made several references to the song in regards to Russia, where the track was seen as a gesture of goodwill. Ringo played drums on this song when the Beach Boys performed it at a White House-sponsored concert in 1984. Anti-communist Americans, however, considered the song "un-American," to which John once replied, "That's very observant of them, since we're not American."
Today in Beatles History (From The Internet Beatles Album) January 15 –
1964 – Brian considers a big film for Gerry and the Pacemakers.
– "She Loves You", 20th week in the Top 10 (UK New Musical Express chart).
– "Please Please Me" LP, 43rd week in the Top 10 (UK New Musical Express chart).
– "With The Beatles" number 1, 8th week (UK New Musical Express chart).
– Ringo arrives at the Orly Airport, Paris.
– Performance at the Cyrano Theatre, Versailles, Paris, with Trini Lopez.
1965 – "Another Beatles Christmas Show" at the Hammersmith Odeon, London (two performances).
1966 – "We Can Work It Out" number 1, 2nd and last continued week (Billboard).
1967 – Brian attends a Donovan concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London.
1970 – John inaugurates "Bag One", an exhibition of some of his lithographies and drawings at the London Arts Gallery.
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