# Chuck Berry Rudolph lyric **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 17, 2004, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311 "2004-12-17T09:18:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crandolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Crandolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crandolph)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/1 "2004-12-17T09:18:05Z")
I’m wondering about the meaning of a lyric in Chuck Berry’s 1958 Xmas song “Run Rudolph Run:” _Run, run Rudolph/ Randolph isn’t far behind_ Who or what is Randolph? Is it a person’s name with no meaning beyond alliteration? Is it one of his “Promised Land”-type recitations of American geographical features (there being a number of Randolph counties and towns, especially in the south)? Are the reindeer being chased, or are they trying to make good time? ---
**Author:** ![Crandolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Crandolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crandolph)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/2 "2004-12-17T09:19:42Z")
Sorry, gave it another listen, the precise lyric is: _Run run Rudolph/ Randolph ain’t too far behind_ … which makes no difference in my question. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/3 "2004-12-17T14:46:45Z")
This will likely end up in _Cafe Society_, as I seriously doubt that anyone besides Chuck Berry knows for sure. That said, I always figured it was little more than a nonsense lyric, taking a name that sounded similar to Rudolph (just for the poetry of it) and suggesting a chase or competition to infuse a little urgency into Rudolph’s running. Pretty lame in and of itself, but still the song as a whole works. Reminds me of Berry’s line “riding along in my calaboose” (in _No Particular Place to Go_). Calaboose meaning jail doesn’t make sense, but it **rhymes** with “belt a-loose.” Or think of “campaign shouting like a Southern diplomat” from _Nadine_ – what the deuce is a “Southern diplomat?” Berry could usually phrase things exquisitely, with both meaning and flow, but if push came to shove he’d make it flow, meaning be damned. ---
**Author:** ![diogenesbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9dc877/32.png) [@diogenesbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diogenesbob)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/4 "2004-12-17T15:05:16Z")
a very common childhood variant of the rudolph song was “randolph the two gun cowboy.” maybe this was the shooter to whom he was referring. ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/5 "2004-12-17T15:09:03Z")
> [@Crandolph](#): > > I’m wondering about the meaning of a lyric in Chuck Berry’s 1958 Xmas song “Run Rudolph Run:” > _Run, run Rudolph/ Randolph isn’t far behind_ > Who or what is Randolph? > Are the reindeer being chased, or are they trying to make good time? The following doesn’t answer the OP directly, but… Rudolph is “Rudolph the red nose reindeer.” Randolph is “Randolph the brown nose reindeer.” Both can run fast but Randolph can’t stop as fast! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/6 "2004-12-17T15:40:14Z")
> [@diogenesbob](#): > > a very common childhood variant of the rudolph song was “randolph the two gun cowboy.” maybe this was the shooter to whom he was referring. Shooter? What shooter? Are you thinking of the line “whizzing like a shooting star?” That’s referring to something zipping rapidly through the sky, like a sabre jet, or Rudolph. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/7 "2004-12-17T15:50:52Z")
I’ve learned something interesting by Googling on the lyrics. The song was written by Johnny Marks and Marvin Broady, not by Chuck Berry. One site has the line as “Run, run, Rudolph, you’re runnin’ way too far behind.” Others have “Vixen can’t be far behind.” Apparently Berry used “Randolph” because…I dunno, he felt like it? In the context of the song, “you’re runnin’ way too far behind” seems to make the most sense. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/8 "2004-12-17T16:32:15Z")
Questions about lyrics usually do best in the Cafe Society forum, so I"ll move this one over there. bibliophage moderator GQ ---
**Author:** ![Crandolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Crandolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crandolph)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/9 "2004-12-17T19:14:31Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > Questions about lyrics usually do best in the Cafe Society forum, so I"ll move this one over there. > > bibliophage > moderator GQ Thanks. I obviously have a vested interest in this if you’ll note my screenname. Somehow I made it through life without noticing the reference before… and fortunately so did all the kids at school! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chuck-berry-rudolph-lyric/280311/10 "2004-12-17T23:21:23Z")
When I asked about the Randoph lyric a couple of years ago, the only thing that the Dopers could come up with is that Chuck was supposed to be singing about Santa being way too far behind but it doesn’t come out that way.