Paul McCartney has revealed The Beatles “loved the idea” that Russians secretly listened to their “forbidden” music.

Speaking on the McCartney: A Life In Lyrics podcast, the Let It Be singer reflected on how the band’s music – and Western music in general – was banned from being imported or played in Russia from the 1960s to the 1980s.

“Everyone in Russia goes back to the Beatles period and remembers having to smuggle records or it was all very you know, little rooms where you could play and you didn’t want people to know,” he explained, while reflecting on the band’s song Back in the U.S.S.R.

He continued, “You didn’t want the authorities to know that you were listening to this forbidden group, which really, we loved the idea of that – that we were getting smuggled along with Levi’s jeans. This was like true cultural arrival.”

When podcast host Paul Muldoon suggested that “art is dangerous,” Paul replied, “To some people. We always thought that we were on the right side, that if we were dangerous, we were dangerous to the Russian authorities, and to us that said they’re not that good.”

The 12-part A Life In Lyrics podcast series was based on Paul’s best-selling book and hosted by poet Paul Muldoon.

Season 1 is currently streaming on iHeartRADIO. Season 2 is set for release in February 2024.

– Cover Media