The Little Drummer Boy Explained

The Little Drummer Boy
Cover:Single Harry Simeone Chorale-The Little Drummer Boy cover.gif
Caption:One of US single picture sleeves
Border:yes
Type:single
Artist:Harry Simeone Chorale
B-Side:Die Lorelei
Genre:
Length:3:03
Label:20th Fox

"The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941.[1] First recorded in 1951 by the Austrian Trapp Family, the song was further popularized by a 1958 recording by the Harry Simeone Chorale; the Simeone version was re-released successfully for several years, and the song has been recorded many times since.[2] In the lyrics, the singer relates how, as a poor young boy, he was summoned by the Magi to the Nativity of Jesus. Without a gift for the Infant, the little drummer boy played his drum with approval from Jesus's mother, Mary, recalling, "I played my best for him" and "He smiled at me". Despite the song's popularity, the story of the drummer boy is not biblically accurate.[3]

Origins and history

The song was originally titled "Carol of the Drum". While speculation has been made that the song is very loosely based on the Czech carol "Hajej, nynej",[4] the chair of the music department at Davis's alma mater Wellesley College claims otherwise.[5] In an interview with Music Department Chair Claire Fontijn, the College writes:

Davis's interest was in producing material for amateur and girls' choirs: Her manuscript is set as a chorale, in which the tune is in the soprano melody with alto harmony, tenor and bass parts producing the "drum rhythm" and a keyboard accompaniment "for rehearsal only". It is headed "Czech Carol freely transcribed by K.K.D.", these initials then crossed out and replaced with "C.R.W. Robinson", a name under which Davis sometimes published.[6] [7]

"Carol of the Drum" appealed to the Austrian Trapp Family Singers, who first brought the song to wider prominence when they recorded it for Decca Records in 1951 on their first album for the label. Their version was credited solely to Davis and published by Belwin-Mills.[8]

In 1957, the song was recorded with an altered arrangement by Jack Halloran for his Jack Halloran Singers on their Dot Records album Christmas Is A-Comin. This arrangement is the one commonly sung today.[2] However, the recording was not released as a single that year. In response to this, Dot producer Henry Onorati, who left Dot to become the new head of 20th Century-Fox Records in 1958,[9] introduced the song to Harry Simeone. When 20th Century-Fox Records contracted with Simeone to record a Christmas album, Simeone hired many of the same singers who had sung in Halloran's version and made a near-identical recording with his newly created Harry Simeone Chorale.[2] [10] It was released as a single in 1958,[10] and later on the album, Sing We Now of Christmas, later retitled The Little Drummer Boy. The only difference between Simeone's and Halloran's versions, was that Simeone's contained finger cymbals, and the song's title had been changed to "The Little Drummer Boy".[2] Simeone and Onorati claimed and received joint composition credits with Davis,[2] although the two did not actually compose or arrange it.[10] Halloran never received a joint writing credit for the song, something his family disagrees with.[10] [11] [12]

The album and the song were an enormous success,[13] with the single scoring in the top 40 of the U.S. music charts from 1958 to 1962.[10] In 1965, Simeone, who had signed with Kapp Records in 1964, re-recorded a new version of the song for his album O' Bambino: The Little Drummer Boy.[14] This version (3:18 play time) was recorded in stereo, had a slightly slower tempo, and contained different-sounding cymbals. Simeone recorded the song a third and final time in 1981 (3:08 play time), for an album, again titled The Little Drummer Boy, on the budget Holiday Records label.

Renditions

"The Little Drummer Boy" has been recorded by many artists:

See also

Notes and References

  1. Boughton, Harrison Charles . Katherine K. Davis: life and work . Thesis, University of Missouri, reprint by University Microfilms . 1977 . Ann Arbor, Michigan.
  2. Web site: Leigh . Spencer . Harry Simeone Populariser of 'The Little Drummer Boy' . . 12 June 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191127224459/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/harry-simeone-527247.html . 27 November 2019 . 5 March 2005.
  3. Web site: Is the little drummer boy in the Bible? . Got Questions? . 14 April 2024.
  4. Web site: Crawford . Deanne . The Little Drummer Boy: A Christmas Unit Study . Our Homeschool Forum . 8 December 2020.
  5. Web site: Wellesley Faculty Experts Provide Historical Context for Christmas Carols for WGBH, U.S. Postal Service . Wellesley College . 8 December 2020.
  6. Web site: Image of original manuscript in Wellesley College Library . 31 December 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120104224411/http://www.wellesley.edu/Library/Music/drummer.gif . 4 January 2012 .
  7. Web site: Cummings . Robert . Katherine K. Davis biography . Allmusic . 31 December 2011 .
  8. Web site: Scan of published sheet music . Photos1.blogger.com . 31 December 2011.
  9. Anonymous, "20th Fox set with 1st Disk Releases". Billboard, April 21, 1958.
  10. Web site: The Little Drummer Boy by The Harry Simeone Chorale Songfacts . https://web.archive.org/web/20191125134008/https://www.songfacts.com/facts/harry-simeone-chorale/the-little-drummer-boy . dead . 2019-11-25 . Songfacts.com . 1977-09-11 . 2011-12-31.
  11. Estrella, E. (8 February 2019). "How the 'Little Drummer Boy' Christmas Carol Came to Be".
  12. Book: The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music. Colin Larkin. Colin Larkin (writer). Virgin Books . 2002. Third. 1-85227-937-0. 394. Encyclopedia of Popular Music.
  13. Web site: Ankeny . Jason . Harry Simeone Chorale . AllMusic . 12 June 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200612172610/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/harry-simeone-chorale-mn0000664964/biography . 12 June 2020.
  14. https://web.archive.org/web/20200612172108/https://img.discogs.com/8hybpZn4AWM1unnoQdfdOI7gjig=/fit-in/593x600/filters:strip_icc:format(jpeg):mode_rgb:quality(90)/discogs-images/R-2368195-1279935193.jpeg.jpg Record catalogue number: KL-1450, Track 1, Length 3:18.
  15. Web site: We Wish You A Merry Christmas: Ray Conniff and The Singers: MP3 Downloads . Amazon . 2012-03-14.
  16. October 7, 1964 . Variety . Variety.
  17. News: Desvelado el 'secreto' mejor guardado de Raphael sobre 'El Tamborilero', oculto durante cinco décadas . 22 July 2023 . COPE . 24 November 2020 . es.
  18. The Top 20 Book, Tony Jasper, ISBN 0 7137 2036 0
  19. Web site: Offizielle Deutsche Charts.
  20. Web site: Zaleski . Annie . When David Bowie and Bing Crosby Rang in the Holidays . . 27 December 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201128215226/https://ultimateclassicrock.com/david-bowie-bing-crosby-little-drummer-boy/ . 28 November 2020 . 30 November 2017.
  21. Web site: The Dandy Warhols – The Little Drummer Boy / Dick. Discogs.
  22. Web site: Ringo Starr I Wanna Be Santa Claus (Mercuruy) . . 24 December 1999 . December 26, 2022.
  23. Web site: Bandaged: The Album.
  24. Web site: The 50 greatest Christmas songs – ranked! . . 5 December 2019 .
  25. News: Greatest of All Time Holiday 100 Songs. Billboard. November 25, 2021.
  26. News: Glee Cast Chart History (Holiday Digital Song Sales). Billboard. November 3, 2020.
  27. News: Pentatonix Chart History (Holiday 100). Billboard. August 5, 2021.
  28. Top 100 Songs. Rolling Stone. August 5, 2021. August 5, 2021. 31 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191231184421/https://www.rollingstone.com/charts/songs/2019-12-20/. dead.
  29. Web site: 2021 Winners The 52nd Annual GMA Dove Awards. 2021-12-06. en-US.
  30. Web site: Happy Holidays We're Singing The Little Drummer Boy.

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