Long Road (1920)

Aleksandr Vertinskii. Music: Boris Fomin. Lyrics: Konstantin Podrevskii

Description: Vertinsky first performed this song at a benefit concert on October 25, 1917 - truly marking a turning point on the 'long road' of Russian history. Many Soviet performers continued to perform the song during NEP; Vertinsky made it a hit in his Parisian emigration, making it one of the few Russian popular songs to gain success in the West. Under the title 'Those Were the Days,' the song has been covered by many performers over many decades, few of them conscious of its historical origins.

1917

EVENTS February Revolution Formation of the Soviets April Crisis Revolution in the Army July Days Kornilov Affair Bolsheviks Seize Power First Bolshevik Decrees Constituent Assembly Treaty of Brest Litovsk
FOUR KINDS OF STATES Communist Party Building Economic Apparatus Building the Soviets Red Guard into Army State Security
DISINTEGRATION OF THE OLD SOCIETY Depopulation of the Cities Food Supply Conflict with the Church Death of the Old Culture Destruction of the Left The Empire Falls
CREATION OF A NEW SOCIETY New Letters and Dates Culture and Revolution The New Woman Workers Organization Peasant Revolution Organs of the Press Raising Socialist Youth