Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives was an American musician and actor with a career tha… Read Full Bio ↴Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives was an American musician and actor with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own radio show, The Wayfaring Stranger, which popularized traditional folk songs.

Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own radio show, The Wayfaring Stranger, which popularized traditional folk songs. In 1942, he appeared in Irving Berlin's This Is the Army and became a major star of CBS Radio. In the 1960s, he successfully crossed over into country music, recording hits such as "A Little Bitty Tear" and "Funny Way of Laughin'". Ives was also a popular film actor through the late 1940s and '50s. His film roles included parts in So Dear to My Heart (1948) and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), as well as the role of Rufus Hannassey in The Big Country (1958), for which he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Ives is often associated with the Christmas season. He did voice-over work as Sam the Snowman, narrator of the classic 1964 Christmas television special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Ives also worked on the special's soundtrack, including the songs "A Holly Jolly Christmas" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", both of which continue to chart annually on the Billboard holiday charts into the 2020s.

The Little Drummer Boy
Burl Ives Lyrics

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Come, they told me pa-rum pum pum pum
Our newborn 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

Little Baby pa-rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too, pa-rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring pa-rum pum pum pum
That's fit to give our King pa- rum pum pum pum
Rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum
Shall I play for you, pa-rum pum pum pum
on my drum?

Mary nodded pa-rum pum pum pum
The Ox and Lamb kept time pa-rum pum pum pum
I played my drum for Him pa-rum pum pum pum
I played my best for Him pa -rum pum pum pum
Rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

Then He smiled at me pa-rum pum pum pum
Me and my drum

Overall Meaning

"The Little Drummer Boy" is a Christmas song about a young boy who plays his drum for the baby Jesus. The boy, who is poor and unable to bring a gift to the newborn King like the other visitors, offers his talent in the form of music. As he approaches the manger, he asks the baby's mother, Mary, if he may play his drum for the infant. Mary assents, and the song describes the boy playing his drum for Jesus, accompanied by the gentle beating of hooves from the animals in the manger. The child then tells the baby Jesus that he has played his best for him and the baby responds with a smile.

The song is notable for its emphasis on the power of music as a form of worship and the idea that every person, no matter how poor or humble, has something to offer in tribute to the divine. The little drummer boy, with his rhythmic drumming, symbolizes the universal human capacity for creativity and artistic expression in honor of the divine.

Line by Line Meaning

Come, they told me pa-rum pum pum pum
They informed me with urgency to come with them, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Our newborn King to see, pa-rum pum pum pum
To observe and honor our newly born King, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Our finest gifts we bring pa-rum pum pum pum
We present our most excellent gifts, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

To lay before the King pa-rum pum pum pum
To offer our gifts humbly in reverence to the King, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Rum pum pum pum. rum pum pum pum
The sound of our drums rhythmically accompanies our singing

So to honor Him pa-rum pum pum pum
We perform this act of tribute with the intention of showing great respect and admiration, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

When we come
During our arrival, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Little Baby pa-rum pum pum pum
Addressing the newborn King as little baby, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

I am a poor boy too, pa-rum pum pum pum
I am also unwealthy, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

I have no gift to bring pa-rum pum pum pum
I do not have any present suitable enough to offer, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

That's fit to give our King pa-rum pum pum pum
A gift that is fitting for our King, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Shall I play for you, pa-rum pum pum pum on my drum?
May I perform music for you, singing pa-rum pum pum pum, on my drum?

Mary nodded pa-rum pum pum pum
Mary gave a nod of approval, as we sang pa-rum pum pum pum

The Ox and Lamb kept time pa-rum pum pum pum
The animals around us kept beat with their movement, as we sang pa-rum pum pum pum

I played my drum for Him pa-rum pum pum pum
As an offering to Him, I performed music on my drum, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

I played my best for Him pa-rum pum pum pum
I played my instrument with all my might, aiming to please Him, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum
Our drums continued to be heard, maintaining the rhythm of our song

Then He smiled at me pa-rum pum pum pum
He expressed happiness towards me, singing pa-rum pum pum pum

Me and my drum
Just me and my musical instrument, singing our song with the pa-rum pum pum pum drumming

Lyrics © INTERNATIONAL KORWIN CORP, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Harry Simeone, Henry V Onorati, Katherine Kennicot Davis, Lorenzo Definti

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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