McCartney Back in the Former Ussr

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.The free concert was McCartney's first in Ukraine. Organized 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.