(no subject)

[randomness]

(I meant to post this two weeks ago, when it would actually have been timely.)

(Go West) Life is peaceful there
(Go West) In the open air
(Go West) Where the skies are blue
(Go West) This is what we're gonna do

(Go West) Sun in wintertime
(Go West) We will feel just fine
(Go West) Where the skies are blue
(Go West) This is what we're gonna do
(1979/1993)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K22ZD1HUV4g (Красная площадь)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39KZ2afBtLU

Comments

[latvianchick.livejournal.com]

To the best of my knowledge, there was no awareness of the original meaning. In fact, it just occurred to me today what it must have meant here (I think today was the first time I heard this song since the early 1990s)!

There are several reasons, I think. First, of course, "West" in the Soviet Union meant "West of the Iron Curtain," which was a single mental space. Second, there was precious little awareness of homosexuality, and to the extent that there was awareness, it was viewed extremely negatively, so, a song about freedom (good) couldn't possibly be about being gay (bad). Russia is still a very homophobic society, sadly. Finally, and perhaps somewhat trivially, people didn't know English that well, so it's questionable how much of the lyrics they actually understood, aside from "together" and "go west." I certainly understood very little.

And you weren't being odd at all =)