"I Like Chinese" is a comedic song written and performed by

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, songwriter, musician, screenwriter and playwright. He was a member of the British comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band the Rutles. Idle studied English at Pembroke Co ...

and arranged by

John Du Prez John Du Prez (born Trevor Jones; 14 December 1946) is a British musician, conductor and composer. He was a member of the 1980s salsa-driven pop band Modern Romance and has since written several film scores including '' Oxford Blues'' (1984), ...

. It appears on ''

Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album ''Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album'' is the final studio album by Monty Python, released in 1980. As the title suggests, the album was put together to complete a contract with Charisma Records. Besides newly written songs and sketche ...

'' from 1980, and was issued as a 7" single in the UK on 3 October 1980. It was later included on the CD ''

Monty Python Sings ''Monty Python Sings'' is a compilation album of songs by English comedy troupe Monty Python. Released in 1989 to celebrate their 20th anniversary, it contains popular songs from their previous albums and films. The album was dedicated to the me ...

''. The song has four verses; the first discussing how the

world The world is the totality of entities, the whole of reality, or everything that Existence, exists. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the world as unique, while others talk ...

has become a terrible place (due in part to

nuclear bombs A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear explo ...

that can "blow us all sky high"). The song then segues into a jaunty melody in which the singer states that he "likes Chinese". Broadly outlining

stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalization, generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can ...

s about Chinese people (an example of this is the stereotype that Chinese people are short, in the line "They only come up to your knees"), it also outlines the achievements of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and its people, including

Chinese food Chinese cuisine comprises cuisines originating from China, as well as from Chinese people from other parts of the world. Because of the Chinese diaspora and the historical power of the country, Chinese cuisine has profoundly influenced many ...

maoism Maoism, officially Mao Zedong Thought, is a variety of Marxism–Leninism that Mao Zedong developed while trying to realize a socialist revolution in the agricultural, pre-industrial society of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic o ...

taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

I Ching The ''I Ching'' or ''Yijing'' ( ), usually translated ''Book of Changes'' or ''Classic of Changes'', is an ancient Chinese divination text that is among the oldest of the Chinese classics. The ''I Ching'' was originally a divination manual in ...

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

(which is actually from ancient India),

penjing ''Penjing'', also known as ''penzai'', is the ancient Chinese art of depicting artistically formed trees, other plants, and landscapes in miniature. Penjing generally fall into one of three categories: * Shumu penjing (樹木盆景): Tree penji ...

("I like their tiny little trees"),

Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...

ping pong Table tennis (also known as ping-pong) is a racket sport derived from tennis but distinguished by its playing surface being atop a stationary table, rather than the court on which players stand. Either individually or in teams of two, players ...

yin and yang Originating in Chinese philosophy, yin and yang (, ), also yinyang or yin-yang, is the concept of opposite cosmic principles or forces that interact, interconnect, and perpetuate each other. Yin and yang can be thought of as complementary an ...

, and

Confucius Confucius (; pinyin: ; ; ), born Kong Qiu (), was a Chinese philosopher of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. Much of the shared cultural heritage of the Sinosphere originates in the phil ...

. Near the end of the song, an

erhu The (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, that is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-stringed fiddle''. It is used as a solo instrument as ...

starts playing to add more Chinese atmosphere. A high-pitched voice created by sped-up playback and meant to represent a Chinese stereotype joins the chorus as well. The song is sung in English, and the fourth verse contains lyrics in

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

. The version appearing on the ''

Monty Python Live (Mostly) ''Monty Python Live (Mostly)'' (also billed as ''Monty Python Live (Mostly): One Down, Five to Go'') was a variety show by the Monty Python comedy group at The O2 in London in July 2014. Planned as a single performance for 1 July, it was expanded ...

'' stage show includes an accompaniment of dancers in Chinese costumes, and has additional lyrics, for example referring to the Chinese as "still a little communese". In

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, the tune with modified lyrics is used in

television advertisement A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...

s by electrical retailer

Bing Lee Bing Lee is an Australian retailing company, a chain of superstores specialising in consumer electronics, computer and telecommunication goods. Bing Lee is the largest privately held electrical retail business in New South Wales with 35 Bing ...

(as "I like Bing Lee").

References

{{Authority control 1980 singles Charisma Records singles Cultural depictions of Confucius Cultural depictions of Chinese people Songs about China Songs about Mao Zedong Songs about East Asian people Ethnic humour Stereotypes of East Asian people Macaronic songs Monty Python songs Satirical songs Songs written by Eric Idle