Paul McCartney last night played what was arguably the wettest
concert in the history of rock, a historic gig in Ukraine designed to
promote unity in the bitterly divided post-Soviet country.
The
former Beatle took to the stage before tens of thousands of sodden fans
in Kiev's independence square despite torrential rain, lightning and
thunder. Flash floods sent water cascading past the set, where fans
gathered under a sea of umbrellas.
Paul McCartney plays in Independence Square, in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. Photograph: Sergei Supinsky/AFP/Getty
The free concert was
McCartney's first in Ukraine. Organised by the Ukrainian billionaire
Viktor Pinchuk, it was shown on giant screens in five cities across the
country in an attempt to promote reconciliation between the orthodox
pro-Russian east and the Catholic pro-European west.
There are
deep divisions in Ukraine over the country's application to join Nato,
and a political crisis following the defection last week of two MP's
from the coalition led by Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine's pro-western prime
minister.
Last night's concert was the biggest ever in the
post-Soviet republic. After half an hour's delay because of the abysmal
weather, McCartney – who turns 66 next week – emerged on stage.
He
belted out the Beatles hit Drive My Car, following up with series of
Beatles songs including – inevitably – Back in the USSR. "I've been
waiting a long time to say that," he told the roaring crowd. McCartney
even managed a few words in Ukrainian and Russian. "Spasiba," he said.
"The
Beatles and Paul McCartney destroyed the Soviet Union," Bogdan Oniskov,
a middle-aged fan wearing a Union flag T-shirt told the Guardian as
rain pounded down. "We hope that he can now solve our problems in
Ukraine. Everybody loves his music."
Oniskov, a 48-year-old old
businessman, said he and his friend Alexey had sent a letter to
McCartney back in 1977. "We asked him to get back with John Lennon. We
didn't have his address but stuck it in an envelope with the words
'Paul McCartney, London'.
"We never heard back from him. But I
guess the letter never arrived. It was the Soviet Union after all,"
Oniskov said, adding: "For our generation the Beatles meant freedom."
Younger
fans agreed. "Our political problems in Ukraine have been exaggerated,"
said Kiril Philopovsky, 18. "Politics and music are different things.
The politicians are fools. But everyone loves McCartney."
The
independence square where McCartney played last night was the scene of
the 2004 Orange Revolution. Peaceful mass protests overturned a
fraudulent election and brought pro-western president Viktor Yushchenko
to power.
Since then, however, his coalition with Yulia
Tymoshenko has descended into bickering. Tymoschenko – who won
December's elections with a wafer-thin majority – no longer has a
majority in parliament, raising the prospect of early elections.
from the guardian by Luke Harding