Back In the U.S.S.R. from McCartney: A Life in Lyrics

The Last Archive

Pushkin Industries

Society & Culture, History

4.6 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 4 October 2023

⏱️ 19 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What’s Paul McCartney, a Liverpudlian, doing writing about the Soviet Union in 1968? Turns out McCartney was doing a little Chuck Berry, a bit of The Beach Boys, some pastiche and a lot of subversion. Opening “The White Album”, “Back in the U.S.S.R.” raised some eyebrows. And because of The Beatles’ evolving position within the former Eastern Bloc the song has over the years taken on a life of its own, following the trajectory of the West’s often fraught relationship with the region.

Enjoy this episode from “McCartney: A Life in Lyrics,” a co-production between iHeart Media, MPL and Pushkin Industries.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's Ben, today I'm bringing you an episode of McCartney, a life in lyrics, a
0:15.7	new podcast for my heart media, MPL, and Pushkin Industries.
0:20.9	In each episode, you'll hear conversations between Paul McCartney and poet Paul Muldoon
0:25.7	as they dissect the people, experiences, and art that shape McCartney's songwriting.
0:31.4	It's a combination masterclass, memoir, and improvised journey with one of the most beloved
0:36.0	figures in popular music.
0:38.4	This episode looks at the creation and legacy of Back in the USSR, a song which raised some
0:43.3	eyebrows back in 1968.
0:45.6	What was Paul McCartney doing writing a song about the Soviet Union at the height of the
0:49.6	Cold War?
0:50.6	Here's the episode.
0:52.6	Subscribe to McCartney, a life in lyrics wherever you get your podcasts, and to binge
0:56.6	listen early and add free, subscribe to Pushkin Plus on Apple Podcasts where at pushkin.fm-plus.
1:22.6	The Beatles of the World were separated by an iron curtain on the brink of nuclear war.
1:30.0	The Beatles released, well, a strange kind of rock-and-roll song.
1:36.1	I'm Paul Muldoon, I'm a poet, a lover of not only the lyric poem, but the song
1:51.4	lyrics.
1:54.2	Over the past several years, I've got to spend time with one of the greatest songwriters
2:00.0	of our era.
2:01.0	And will you look at me?
2:03.0	It's happened.
2:04.0	I'm going on tour.
	...

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