Exclusive:
Sir Paul McCartney decided to drop the 1968 hit song – about a Russian spy returning home – ahead of his recent Get Back tour
Nyet It Be… Sir Paul McCartney takes a stand against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – dropping the classic Beatles song Back in the USSR from his concerts.
He will be absent from all his shows for the foreseeable future, including his headlining performance at the Glastonbury Festival next Saturday.
A source said: “The song is a crowd favourite, but with the horrors unfolding in Ukraine, it was a simple decision for Paul to make.
“It would be perverse to sing a flippant rock’n’roll song about Russia.
“Paul could not in good conscience sing these lyrics when so many people are being brutally slaughtered at the hands of Russia.” The song, written by Macca in 1968, is about a Russian spy returning from America.
The lyrics include the line “and Moscow girls make me sing and scream”.
It is the sixth most played song at his concerts behind Let It Be, Hey Jude, Band on the Run, Live and Let Die and Lady Madonna.
Back in the USSR has appeared on all of Sir Paul’s previous solo tours since 1989.
But the song was not played on any of her recent US dates which ended on Thursday night.
Beatles legend Sir Paul, who turns 80 today, waved a Ukrainian flag on stage during his series of performances in America.
He said in February, shortly after Russia launched the invasion: “Remembering playing for our friends in Ukraine in Independence Square [in the capital Kyiv] in 2008 and I am thinking of them in these difficult times. We send our love and support.
Macca usually plays the song right before the encore alongside Let It Be, Live and Let Die and Hey Jude.
Sir Paul wrote the song while the Beatles were meditating in India.
Macca designed it as a parody of Chuck Berry’s Back in the USA, with a nod to the classic Beach Boys hit, California Girls.
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Image:
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As for the Soviet Union, this includes the lines: “Well Ukrainian girls really knock me out / They leave the West behind.”
The lyrics also include, “Oh, show me your snowy mountains to the south / Take me to your father’s farm / Let me hear your balalaikas sound / Come on and keep your comrade warm.”
The song sparked anger in the United States at the time as it was seen as a celebration of the enemy during the Cold War – especially since it was released months after the Warsaw Pact countries , including the Soviet Union, invaded Czechoslovakia.
Some have accused the Beatles of being communist sympathizers, despite the band being banned in the Soviet Union.
Sir Paul once said: “Probably the most important reason for me to go to Russia would be to play in the USSR”
The song raged through Moscow’s Red Square in 2003 when he was finally able to perform it in the country.
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