Title of the Song: "Little Drummer Boy" was originally titled "Carol of the Drums" because of the repeating line "pa rum pum pum pum" which imitates the sound of a drum.
Author: The song "Little Drummer Boy" is believed to have been written by Katherine K. Davis in 1941 based on an old Czech carol. Other names credited for this song are Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone.
Controversy: Jack Halloran's daughter, Dawn, stated that her father "did the original choral arrangement and recorded it for Dot Records in 1957". She added that "Dot unfortunately didn't put the single out for the 1957 Christmas season, and Simeone succeeded in getting composing credit (along with Henry Onorati and Katherine K. Davis) for a piece he had nothing to do with." - (from a letter to Jerry Osbourne).
Interesting Fact: A claymation version based on the song was produced by Rankin-Bass for tv in 1968 with the voice of Eileen Evelyn Greer Garson narrating.
Lyrics {Excerpt):
Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum
A new born King to see, pa rum pum pum pum
Our finest gifts we bring, pa rum pum pum pum
To lay before the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,
So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
When we come.
Music Samples: Listen to a clip of the song from the album "The Little Drummer Boy"
Music Sheet Digital downloads from Musicnotes.Com
