Back in the USSR

Back in the U.S.S.R. was written mainly by Paul McCartney in 1968. It is the opener to The Beatles (known almost universally as The White Album). On the album, this song leads right into track 2, which is Dear Prudence. The title is an ironic or playful allusion to Chuck Berry's Back in the USA. The chorus has musical references to the Beach Boys style, in part because Mike Love of the Beach Boys was in India at the same time with Paul, at the time he wrote the song. Love helped him imitate the sound and feel of the Beach Boys. The Beatles had gone to India to learn more about Transcendental Meditation.

The production starts with the sounds of a jet airplane taking off. The lyrics tell that the singer is going from Miami back home to the USSR, where girls in the Ukraine "knock me out" and girls in Moscow "make me sing and shout." Paul plays an energetic piano to accompany some virtuosic lead guitar riffs. In 1976 Parlophone released Back in the U.S.S.R. as a single with Twist and Shout on the b-side.

During the recording sessions for this song the group continued to struggle to get along with each other. On August 22, 1968, Ringo stormed out of the session and quit, temporarily as it turned out. McCartney played the main drum parts on this track and on Dear Prudence, though John and George also added percussion tracks as well. Lennon also plays a six-string bass.