One World That Means The World (Arkhipov) is the first single from London-based progressive rock band Hats Off Gentlemen It’s Adequate’s eighth studio album ‘The Uncertainty Principle’, due to be released later in 2024.
The song was inspired by the refusal of Soviet naval officer Vasily Arkhipov (1926-1998) to go agree to an action that could have
One World That Means The World (Arkhipov) is the first single from London-based progressive rock band Hats Off Gentlemen It’s Adequate’s eighth studio album ‘The Uncertainty Principle’, due to be released later in 2024.
The song was inspired by the refusal of Soviet naval officer Vasily Arkhipov (1926-1998) to go agree to an action that could have led to nuclear war.
During the Cuban missile crisis, Arkhipov was the chief of staff of a flotilla of diesel powered submarines armed with nuclear torpedoes. He was stationed on the submarine B-59. The decision to launch nuclear torpedoes against the United States Navy required the agreement of all three onboard officers. Arkhipov refused to authorise the launch that had been approved by the other two officers. He was described by Thomas Blanton, director of the US National Security Archive as “the man who saved the world”.
On 27 October 1962, during the Cuban Missle Crisis, the Soviet submarine B-59 had been located in international waters near Cuba, by a group of 11 United States Navy destroyers and the aircraft carrier USS Randloph. The US Navy began dropping signalling depth charges, intended to force the submarine to the surface.
The B-59 had not had contact from Moscow for several days, and was hiding too deeply to monitor radio signals. The Soviet officers didn’t know whether they were at war or not. The submarine captain (Valentin Grigoryevich Savitsky), thinking war might have started, wanted to launch their T-5 nuclear torpedo.
Normally, only the captain and the political officer would have been required to authorise the launch. It was only because Arkhipov, the second-in-command of the B-59, but also the flotilla chief of staff, was on board this submarine, and refused , that the launch was prevented.
Arkhipov argued with the captain and the political officer, and managed to persuade them to surface and await orders from Moscow. It is plausible that this action prevented a nuclear war. Conditions on the submarine at the time were appalling, with dwindling battery power leading to a failure of the air conditioning, extreme heat and high levels of carbon dioxide in the air. High CO2 in the air produces a feeling of suffocation and induces panic.
After surfacing, the B-59 made contact with a US destroyer, and then was ordered by the Russian fleet to return to Soviet territory. On their return, the crew were treated as if they had let down their country. One admiral was said to have told them “it would have been better if you’d gone down with your ship”. The crew largely kept silent about their experiences for decades.
Arkhipov continued commanding submarines in the Soviet Navy, reaching the rank of vice admiral in 1981, before retiring in 1988. He died in 1998 of kidney cancer.
This song is dedicated to Vasily Arkhipov.
Lyrics
“Trapped beneath the waves Hunted by their fleet The burning lifeless air Still waiting for orders
Two decide to launch But you were the third with the key The pressure above, around and inside And you said no
We don’t know who we are, till we’re forced to decide We don’t know what’s inside One word that means the world We don’t know who we are, till we have to decide What we’ll say if that day comes That was the day when you said no
When came home you were told It would have been better if we’d drowned You were silenced You were disappeared You were supposed to have been ashamed
That was years ago, and now I’m told I’m a hero Maybe, I just hope if I faced the same again I’d have the strength to still say no
We don’t know who we are, till we’re forced to decide We don’t know what’s inside One word that means the world I never knew who I was, till I was forced, to decide I didn’t know what was inside, I found out when I said no
We don’t know, who we are, till we’re forced to decide We don’t know what’s inside, one word that means the world I never knew, who I was, till I was forced to decide I didn’t know what was inside I found out when I said no” credits releases April 5, 2024
All music written and performed by Malcolm Galloway (vocals, guitars, synths, producer, mastering) and Mark Gatland (bass guitar, vocal engineer, additional synths on 'Music For Dancing', co-producer)
Lyrics by Malcolm Galloway
Artwork by Malcolm Galloway using DALLE-3 (AI art) and Photoshop)