The Beatles - Back In The USSR lyrics
This site covers the original British Beatles Albums plus analyses of the lyrics of non-album tracks.
Information on how the Beatles wrote the lyrics to their songs on The Beatles (white album) can be navigated from below the album cover.
Find out how the lyrics to Back In The USSR came to be written.
Beatles Album: The Beatles AKA The White Album : Track 1
Year: 1968
Lyrics: Lennon, McCartney
Length: 2.45
The Beatles back in the USSR song is massively influenced both by the songs that Brian Wilson wrote for the Beach Boys and from the music of Chuck Berry. The Beatles and the Beach boys had a lot of respect for each other, with Wilson and McCartney being inspired by Rubber soul and Pet sounds respectively.
In 1968 Paul met up with beach boy Mike Love while hanging out in Rishikesh in India. Much of the Beach boys songs had been inspired by the track 'back in the USA' by Chuck berry, and Mike mentioned that it would be a cool idea to write a song in the same vain but inspired by the good things, and beautiful girls in the USSR. Hence the references in back in the USSR to the girls in Georgia and the Ukraine.
Interestingly, in the USA there were lots of complaints about the lyrics of the back in the USSR song, as people saw it as the Beatles supporting communism and of Russia having places better than those in the US. The Beatles reply was that they were trying to support rock 'n' roll and that their songs were for everyone in the world.
On this song paul takes over lead vocals and plays the rock 'n' roll style piano and lead guitar. George takes over from Paul on the bass.
Individual Beatles role on back in the USSR
John Lennon: Backing Vocals, 6 string Bass guitar
Paul McCartney: Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Piano
George Harrison: Backing Vocals, Bass guitar
Ringo Starr: Drums