Dominick the Donkey
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Dominick the Donkey is a Christmas song written by Ray Allen, Sam Saltzberg, and Lou Monte, first sung by Monte in 1960. The song describes a donkey who helps Santa Claus bring presents to children in Italy. The song received little airplay at the time due to the perception of its novelty[citation needed] and some Italian lyrics, but was quite popular in Italian-American households.[citation needed]
It was included on Volume 2 of the Ultimate Christmas Album series produced by Collectables Records.
Since 1986, members of the Gamma Psi chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon have boisterously played the song over speakers that can be heard neighborhood-wide starting after Thanksgiving and continuing through the new year. This has led to recognition from the Butler Collegian newspaper, local top 40 station 99.5 WZPL, station KDND 107.9 in Sacramento, CA, and the Indianapolis Star.[citation needed] The song has also been used extensively on The Chris Moyles Show in reference to Dominic "the slaphead" Byrne[who?] around the Christmas period.[citation needed]