He was born in San Piero Patti, Sicily. His family emigrated to the United States in 1920 and settled in Santa Rosa, California. He started his musical career playing the baritone, like his father, but he quickly branched out into other instruments, notably the French horn and the piano. He received a bachelor's degree from San Francisco State College, and then studied composition with Darius Milhaud at Mills College in Oakland, California.
After he graduated, he was hired as an arranger and composer by guitarist and bandleader Johnny Richards. He spent World War II playing with Paul Desmond in an army band.
After WWII Rugolo went to work for Stan Kenton who headed one of the most progressive big bands of the time. Rugolo provided arrangements and original compositions that drew on his knowledge of 20th century music, sometimes blurring the boundaries between the ballroom and the concert hall.
While Rugolo continued to work occasionally with Kenton in the 1950s, he spent more time creating arrangements for pop vocalists, including June Christy, Peggy Lee and the Four Freshmen. During this period he also worked for a while on musicals at MGM, and served as an A&R director for Mercury Records in the late 1950s. Among his many albums were Adventures In Rhythm, Introducing Pete Rugolo, Rugolomania, Reeds In Hi-Fi and Music For Hi-Fi Bugs.
Frosty The Snowman
Pete Rugolo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With a corncob pipe and a button nose
And two eyes made out of coal.
Frosty the snowman is a fairy tale, they say,
He was made of snow but the children
Know how he came to life one day.
There must have been some magic in that
For when they placed it on his head
He began to dance around.
O, Frosty the snowman
Was alive as he could be,
And the children say he could laugh
And play just the same as you and me.
Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Look at Frosty go.
Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Over the hills of snow.
Frosty the snowman knew
The sun was hot that day,
So he said, "Let's run and
We'll have some fun
Now before I melt away."
Down to the village,
With a broomstick in his hand,
Running here and there all
Around the square saying,
Catch me if you can.
He led them down the streets of town
Right to the traffic cop.
And he only paused a moment when
He heard him holler "Stop!"
For Frosty the snow man
Had to hurry on his way,
But he waved goodbye saying,
"Don't you cry,
I'll be back again some day."
Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Look at Frosty go.
Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Over the hills of snow.
The song "Frosty the Snowman" is a jolly and cheerful tune that tells the story of a snowman who is brought to life by magic. The song starts by describing Frosty's physical features, with his corncob pipe, button nose, and coal eyes, which all contribute to his jolly happy soul nature. The lyrics then reveal that Frosty is a fairy tale, but the children in the song know that he came to life one day because of the magic that was in the silk hat placed upon his head.
The second verse describes Frosty's lively nature and how the children believed he could laugh and play just like them. The chorus of the song, with its thumpetty thump thump and thumpety thump thump, provides a playful and rhythmic beat that makes the listeners want to join in and dance. The third verse explains how Frosty is aware that the sun is hot, and he encourages the children to have fun before he inevitably melts away. Frosty then leads the children through the village, running and playing with his broomstick, and eventually making a stop at the traffic cop. The final verse sees Frosty having to leave, but he promises to come back again someday.
Overall, the song is a whimsical and joyful celebration of the magic of winter and the simplicity of childhood. It captures the imagination of children and adults alike, and its upbeat melody and memorable lyrics have ensured its enduring popularity.
Line by Line Meaning
Frosty the snowman was a jolly happy soul,
Frosty was a very happy person made out of snow.
With a corncob pipe and a button nose
He had a corncob pipe and a nose made of a button.
And two eyes made out of coal.
His eyes were made of coal.
Frosty the snowman is a fairy tale, they say,
Some people say that Frosty's story is not real and just a story.
He was made of snow but the children
Even though Frosty was created out of snow, the children
Know how he came to life one day.
know how he magically came to life.
There must have been some magic in that
The magic that brought Frosty to life must have been in that
Old silk hat they found.
old silk hat they found.
For when they placed it on his head
When they put the hat on Frosty's head
He began to dance around.
he started to dance around.
O, Frosty the snowman
Oh, Frosty the snowman
Was alive as he could be,
was as alive as he could ever be.
And the children say he could laugh
The children claimed that Frosty was capable of laughter.
And play just the same as you and me.
and played just like any human would.
Thumpetty thump thump,
He made sound when he walked, like thumping.
Thumpety thump thump,
He made sound when he walked, like thumping.
Look at Frosty go.
Look at Frosty as he moves along.
Over the hills of snow.
going over the snowy hills.
Frosty the snowman knew
Frosty knew
The sun was hot that day,
that the sun was hot that day.
So he said, "Let's run and
Frosty suggested that they should all run and
We'll have some fun
have more fun
Now before I melt away."
before he melted away completely.
Down to the village,
Frosty and the children proceeded down to the village.
With a broomstick in his hand,
Frosty was holding a broomstick.
Running here and there all
Running all over the place
Around the square saying,
looping around the square and going:
Catch me if you can.
"Try and catch me if you are fast enough."
He led them down the streets of town
Frosty directed them along the streets of the city
Right to the traffic cop.
Right up to the traffic cop
And he only paused a moment when
He briefly paused when
He heard him holler "Stop!"
The traffic cop called out, "Stop!"
For Frosty the snow man
Since Frosty the snowman
Had to hurry on his way,
was in a hurry.
But he waved goodbye saying,
But he said goodbye while waving,
"Don't you cry,
"Don't worry,
I'll be back again some day."
Frosty assured the children he would come back again someday.
Thumpetty thump thump,
He made sound when he walked, like thumping.
Thumpety thump thump,
He made sound when he walked, like thumping.
Look at Frosty go.
Look at Frosty as he moves along.
Thumpetty thump thump,
He made sound when he walked, like thumping.
Thumpety thump thump,
He made sound when he walked, like thumping.
Over the hills of snow.
going over the snowy hills.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JACK ROLLINS, STEVE NELSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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