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7. You'll Be Back (video)

Updated: Sep 1, 2023


This song is a comedic solo by the King of England, and almost all of its lines contains something meaningful and unique, so I will take a different approach and interpret this song line by line in order.


"You say/The price of my love's not a price you're willing to pay" - The "love" is Britain fighting for the colonies against the French in the 7 Years War. The colonies are "not willing to pay" for it by being discontent with the taxes imposed by the British.


"You cry/In your tea, which you hurl in the sea when you see me go by" - Britain imposed an unfair tax on tea, which the colonists hated. As a result, a group of patriots, called the Sons of Liberty, boarded a British ship and threw hundreds of boxes of tea overboard as a symbol of patriotism (this event was called the Boston Tea Party).


The next few lines is King George expressing his love for the colony. He doesn't actually love it, he just wants America to remain a colony of Britain for the immense resources and land in the colonies.


"And when push comes to shove/I will send a fully armed battalion to remind you of my love" - This was actually true. Before the actual war started, Britain sent soldiers to the colonies to enforce order and intimidate them, but no one actually fought.


'You'll be the one complainin' when I am gone" - Britain supplies the colonies with many services and goods, like any manufactured products as well as barn animals. Britain also doesn't believe that the colonies, being messy and underdeveloped, will be able to govern itself after it becomes a country.


"You'll be back like before/I will fight the fight and win the war" - If Britain wins the war, the colonies would remain under Britain. If the colonies win the war, they would separate from Britain and become a country. Since we all know that America is a country today, it is clear that Britain lost the war.


"'Cause when push comes to shove/I will kill your friends and family to remind you of my love". - Although comedic in the song, an estimated 6,000 Americans were killed in action in the war. Approximately 6,100 were wounded, and up to 20,000 were taken prisoner. Historians believe that up to another 17,000 died from disease, of which could very likely include many civilians.

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© 2023 by Joshua Li

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