The Saga Begins

"The Saga Begins"
Single by "Weird Al" Yankovic
from the album Running with Scissors
Released June 24, 1999
Format digital download, CD
Recorded April 20, 1999
Genre Comedy rock, folk rock
Length 5:27
Label Volcano
Producer(s) "Weird Al" Yankovic
"Weird Al" Yankovic singles chronology
"The Night Santa Went Crazy"
(1996)		 "The Saga Begins"
(1999)		 "It's All About the Pentiums"
(1999)
Running with Scissors track listing
  1. "The Saga Begins"
  2. "My Baby's in Love with Eddie Vedder"
  3. "Pretty Fly for a Rabbi"
  4. "The Weird Al Show Theme"
  5. "Jerry Springer"
  6. "Germs"
  7. "Polka Power!"
  8. "Your Horoscope for Today"
  9. "It's All About the Pentiums"
  10. "Truck Drivin' Song"
  11. "Grapefruit Diet"
  12. "Albuquerque"
Audio sample
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"The Saga Begins" is a parody song by "Weird Al" Yankovic of "American Pie" by Don McLean, with lyrics that humorously summarize the plot of the film Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace through the point of view of Obi-Wan Kenobi, one of the protagonists of the film, as well as Anakin's master. The song's title, not mentioned anywhere in the lyrics, derives from a tagline that appeared in teaser trailers and the film poster[1] for The Phantom Menace: "Every saga has a beginning". "The Saga Begins" was released as a single from the 1999 album Running with Scissors, and later appearing on the compilation album titled The Saga Begins.

History

Set to the tune of "American Pie," "The Saga Begins" recounts the plot of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, from Obi-Wan Kenobi's point of view. Yankovic gathered most of the information he needed to write the song from Internet spoilers.[2] Although Lucasfilm declined a request for an advance screening, Yankovic eventually attended a costly pre-screening for charity.[2] He had done such an accurate job with the story line that after the pre-screening, he ended up making only very minor alterations.[2]

McLean approved of the song and,[2] according to Yankovic, also has said that his children played it so much that "he'd start thinking about Jedis and Star Wars, and it would mess him up" in concert.[3] According to Yankovic's official website, Lucasfilms' official response to the song was, "You should've seen the smile on (George Lucas') face."[4] This is the second Star Wars song Weird Al has created, with the first being 1985's "Yoda", a parody of "Lola" by The Kinks.

Music video

The video begins in the desert on the planet Tatooine. Yankovic, dressed like Obi-Wan Kenobi, the protagonist of Episode I, walks until he comes across Darth Sidious playing the piano. Yankovic uses the Force to get a resonator guitar, and in the second verse he reappears performing in a Mos Eisley Cantina. In the last verse, he returns to the desert, and in the last chorus, numerous "Obi-Wan" clones sing as a group.

Yankovic performing the song in Auckland, New Zealand on March 10, 2007.

In 2011, the entire video was released as a bonus feature in a Star Wars spoofs compilation for the 2011 Blu-ray box set release of the saga.

Radio edit

The song was played frequently on Radio Disney and later released on Radio Disney Jams Volume 2. Radio Disney took issue with his line "Do you see him hitting on the queen?" and removed it (so that the song skipped slightly). Yankovic, who usually does not like to change lyrics to suit the needs of others, provided Radio Disney with an updated version, having changed the words to "Do you see him talking to the queen?" He said that the alternate lyrics were preferable to the bad edit.

Charts

Chart (2010) Peak
position
US Comedy Digital Tracks (Billboard)[5] 20

References

  1. ↑ File:Star Wars Phantom Menace poster.jpg
  2. 1 2 3 4 TheForce.Net - Jedi Council - Interviews | Weird Al Yankovic
  3. ↑ Mansfield, Brian (May 10, 2015). "On the Road Again: "Weird" Al Yankovic". USA Today. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  4. ↑ AskAl Archive, published August, 1999; retrieved June 27, 2015
  5. ↑ "Weird Al Yankovic – Chart History: Comedy Digital Tracks". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
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