Rasputin and the Strange Future Known as the Seventies

So in those lines (13,39 and 45) are you saying it foreshadows what's to come because Russia is great no more? Or because the proletariat rose up to kill Rasputin and then would rise up to build a communist state? (in theory it was the proletariat, at least) Or because "love is dead" in Russia?


I'm sorry I didn't come off as clear as I could have. What I meant was that the proletariat rose up and destroyed love -- figuratively -- and replaced it with communism. Russia became great after the first and second world war, long after Rasputin's death. What was lost however was Russia's greatest love machine, did they sacrifice something so fundamental to humanity to gain unity and power?

Lets discuss the seventies shall we? It was a time of sexual freedom, drugs, and just general living in the moment. Much like Rasputin.

The mantra of the song is: Ra Ra Rasputin, which I decipher as a call to arms, a cheering of sorts. It states that these people of the seventies can now level with this Rasputin fellow on multiple levels now, when before they could not. Now, in modern times, you could live like a king would have in the 1800s.

I believe the song was being generally favorable to Rasputin in that the people singing it had the same lifestyle as him.

Analysis of Rasputin as the last and greatest "Love Machine"

"After the end of World War II, the world was split into two -- East and West. This marked the beginning of the era called the Cold War." - Big Boss, Metal Gear Solid 3 Snake Eater


The Cold War and the thought of nuclear devastation instilled fear within all. It is only natural for the culture to reflect this, and what better measure of culture than its music? Disco was born in the United States and it died only decades after its adoption whereas other music forms have lived on. It slowly lost popularity, changing styles throughout the 1980s. Disco gave rise to funk and from funk pop music was born as we know it today, but in Disco's original form -- we see it no longer. Therefore, I think it is only fitting for the Cold War to be discussed when talking about Disco, it was born in that era and it died in that era.

The song Rasputin by Boney M reflects a lot of interest in the affairs of Russian history. Perhaps it seeks to explain the origins of Lenin's Russia. During the red scare, many in the United States believed whole heartily that Communists didn't have the capability of humor, romance, or even compassion. Lines 13, 39, and 45 all refer to Rasputin as "Russia's greatest love machine" and as we all know, Rasputin was brutally murdered by the proletariat of Russia. Could this be a symbolic preface to what was to come in the years after with Communism? I think so.