Right Hand Man
British General Howe's got troops on the water
Thirty-two thousand troops in New-York harbor
Thirty-two thousand troops in New-York harbor[Thirty-two thousand troops in New-York harbor]
When they surround our troops
They surround our troops
When they surround our troops
As a kid in the Caribbean I wished for a war
I knew that I was poor
I knew it was the only way to rise up
If they tell my story
I am either gonna die on the battlefield in glory or rise up
I will fight for this land
But there's only one man
Who can give us a command so we can rise up
Understand?
It's the only way to rise up
Rise up!
Here he comes—(Here comes the General!)
Ladies and Gentlemen!
Here comes the General!
The moment you've been waiting for!
Here comes the General!
The pride of Mount Vernon!
Here comes the General—
George Washington!
We're out-gunned!(What?)
Out-manned!(What?)
Out-numbered, out-planned!
We gonna make an all out stand!
Hey, I'm gonna need a right hand man!
Check it, can I be real a second?
For just a millisecond?
Let down my guard and tell the people how I feel a second?
Now I'm the model of a modern major General
The venerated Virginian veteran whose men are all lining up,
to put me up on a pedestal
Write a letter to relatives
Embellishing my elements and eloquence
But the elephant is in the room
The truth is in your face when you hear the British cannons go...
Boom!!
Any hope of success is fleeting
How can I keep leading when the people are fleeting n' keep retreating?
We put a stop to the bleeding as the British take Brooklyn
Knight takes rook, but look—
We are out-gunned!(What?)
Out-manned!(What?)
Out-numbered, Out-planned!
We gonna make an all out stand!
Hey I'm gonna need a right hand man!
Incoming!!
They're battering down the Battery check the damages(Rah!)
We gotta stop'em and rob'em of their advantages(Rah!)
Let's take the stand with the stamina God has granted us
Hamilton won't abandon ship
Yo! Let's steal their cannons(Shh...Boom!)
Goes the cannon, watch the blood and the s*** spray and...(Boom!)
Goes the cannon, we were abandoning Kips Bay and...(Boom!)
There's another ship and...(Boom!)
We've just lost southern tip and...(Boom!)
We gonna run to Harlem quick, we can't afford another slip
Guns and horses giddy-up
I decide to divvy-up
My force, they’re skittish as the British cut the city up
This close to giving up, facing mad scrutiny
I scream in the face, in this mass mutiny
Are these the men with which I am to defend America?
We ride at midnight, Manhattan in the distance
I cannot be everywhere at once, people!
I’m in dire need of assistance
Your excellency, sir!
Who are you?
Aaron Burr, sir!
Permission to state my case?
As you were
Sir
I was a captain under General Montgomery
Until he caught a bullet in the neck in Quebec
And well, in summary
I think that I could be of some assistance
I admire how you keep firing on the British from a distance(Huh?)
I have some questions, a couple of suggestions on how to fight instead of fleeing west(Yes?)
Well...
Your excellency, you wanted to see me?
Hamilton, come in, have you met Burr?
Yes, sir! We keep meeting
As I was saying, sir, I look forward to seeing your strategy play out...
Burr?
Sir?
Close the door on your way out!
Have I done something wrong, sir?
On the contrary, I called you here because our odds are beyond scary
Your reputation precedes you, but I have to laugh
Sir?
Hamilton, how come no one can get you on their staff?
Sir?
Don’t get me wrong, you’re a young man of great renown
I know you stole British cannons when we were still downtown
Nathaniel Green and Henry Knox wanted to hire you then
To be their secretary? I don't think so
Why are you upset?
I'm not!
It’s alright, you want to fight, you’ve got a hunger
I was just like you when I was younger
Head full of fantasies of dying like a martyr?
Yes, dying is easy, young man! Living is harder
Why are you telling me this?
I’m being honest, I’m working with a third of what our Congress has promised
We are a powder keg about to explode
I need someone like you to lighten the load, so?
I am not throwing away my shot
I am not throwing away my shot
Hey, I’m just like my country, I’m young scrappy and hungry
I am not throwing away my shot
Son
We are out-gunned, out-manned!
You need all the help you can get
I have some friends: Laurens, Mulligan, Marquis de Lafayette, okay, what else?
Out-numbered, out-planned!
We’ll need some spies on the inside
Some King’s men who might let some things slide
I’ll write to Congress and tell 'em we need supplies
You rally the guys, master the element of surprise
I’ll rise above my station, organize your information
Till we rise to the occasion of our new nation. Sir!
Here comes the General!
Rise up!(What?)
Here comes the General!
Rise up!(What?)
Here comes the General!
Rise up!(What?)
Here comes the General!
What?
And his right hand man!
Boom!!