LIFES RICH PAGEANT: BEGIN THE BEGIN

Channeling Cole Porter in name only, Begin The Begin is a raucous, anthemic response to Fables, a starting over if you will.  As with Murmur, Stipe is evoking historical but not mythical figures.  Myles Standish and Martin Luther are definitely forerunners, Pilgrim and Protestant respectively.  The lyrics are pretty straightforward and fairly easy to understand.  Stipe has made some changes over the years including substituting the word 'anthology' for 'mythology' and cutting the end of the third verse altogether, that said, the song is still a staple of their live act.
  There are not a ton of live versions of the song from the time period it was recorded so it's difficult to place some of the lyrics, I wanted to make 'A philanderer's tie to murderer's shoe' work, but live the lyric is 'a murderer's shoe' so there it is.



BEGIN THE BEGIN
A birdie in the hand for life's rich demand
The insurgency began and you missed it
I looked for it and I found it
Myles Standish proud congratulate me

A philanderer's tie
A murderer's shoe

Life's rich demand creates
Supply in the hand of the powers
The only vote that matters
Silence means security silence means approve the world
And Zenith on the TV
Tiger run around the tree
Follow the leader
Run return into butter

Let's begin again, begin the begin
Let's begin again like Martin Luther zen
A mythology begins the begin
Answer me your question I can't itemize
I can't think clearly, look to me for reason
It's not there, I can't even rhyme here in the begin

A philanderer's tie
A murderer's shoe
Example the finest example is you

The birdie in the hand for life's rich demand
The insurgency began and you missed it
I looked for it and I found it
Myles Standish proud congratulate me

A philanderer's tie
A murderer's shoe
Let’s begin again
Begin the begin
Let's begin again


According to Peter, this song started out with the band sitting around and creating a crazy song with no repetition except for the riff.  The first attempt was abandoned, but the riff still gets a lot of mileage.  I've tabbed out the two guitars, but the song can be played with one.  On the original track there is also some power chord backup happening and live, Peter seems to play more with the open strings on the power chord front which sounds pretty cool.
  A note about the ending.  The 7/5 part is tapped Eddie Van Halen style and the last (12) is harmonic scratching.  This is definitely an electric guitar song.  Peter now plays the 7/5 part live as a discordant alarm with the high e at 5 and the B at 4.  The middle bridge riff is also tapped, but can be played by pulling off of the notes (p) kind of the opposite of hammering on, the process starts on the note instead of jumping on it.  Also note that Peter scratches the chords in transitions quite a bit in this song.

BEGIN THE BEGIN

Verse:

e|----------------2---2---2----|

B|----------------2---2---2----|

G|------0-2-0-----3---3---3----|

D|-0-2-4-----4-0--4---4---4----|

A|----------------4---4---4----|

E|----------------2---0---2----|

e|-2---5-5-5---0-0-0---2-----------------|

B|-2---5-5-5---0-0-0---2-----------------|

G|-3---6-6-6---1-1-1---3--------0-2-0----|

D|-4---7-7-7---2-2-2---4---0-2-4-----4-0-|

A|-4---7-7-7---2-0-2---4-----------------|

E|-2---5-0-5---0-0-0---2-----------------|

e|-2---5-5-5---0-0-0---2---0--|

B|-2---5-5-5---0-0-0---2---0--|

G|-3---6-6-6---1-1-1---3---3--|

D|-4---7-7-7---2-2-2---4---4--|

A|-4---7-7-7---2-0-2---4---4--|

E|-2---5-0-5---0-0-0---2---0--|

Chorus:

e|-2-------2----------------|

B|-3-------3----------------|

G|-2-------2---0-2-0--------|

D|-0-------0--------4-0-----|

A|----2-3-0-----------------|

E|--------------------------|

Middle Bridge:

Guitar 1

e|-1---3--------3--------3-------4------------------2-|

B|-1---3--------3--------3-------6------------------2-|

G|-2---4--------4--------4-------6------------------3-|

D|-3---5--------5--------5-------6------------------4-|

A|-3---5--------5--------5-------4------------------4-|

E|-1---3--------3--------3-------4------------------2-|

Guitar 2

e|---------------------------------------------------|

B|------3-5b-3---3-5b-3---3-5b-3---------------------|

G|-------4--------4--------4------4p-0-2p-0----------|

D|-----------------------------------------4p-0-2p-0-|

A|---------------------------------------------------|

E|---------------------------------------------------|

End:

Guitar 1

e|-1---3-------------1---3----------------1---3----1---3-|

B|-1---3-------------1---3----------------1---3----1---3-|

G|-2---4-------------2---4----------------2---4----2---4-|

D|-3---5-------------3---5----------------3---5----3---5-|

A|-3---5-------------3---5----------------3---5----3---5-|

E|-1---3-------------1---3----------------1---3----1---3-|

Guitar 2

e|----------------------------------------------(12)-----|

B|------5-3p-0-3-5b-3------757575757575757------(12)-----|

G|------------4---------------------------------(12)-----|

D|----------------------------------------------(12)-----|

A|----------------------------------------------(12)-----|

E|----------------------------------------------(12)-----|