Veterans in Halifax attended a tribute concert over the weekend, where a choir sang songs that became wartime anthems while Canadian soldiers served overseas in the Second World War.
The New Players Choral Society performed at the St. Agnes Church Hall on Sunday afternoon, singing wartime favourites and popular love songs from the period.
Many veterans who attended the concert said hearing those songs brought them right back to the time they served abroad.
Second World War veteran John Rolfe said when he heard the choir sing the classic "Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh!" he almost went up on stage to join them. He said the music reminds him of spending time with his fellow soldiers while they served together in Europe.
"I remember the people I sailed with too," he told CTV Atlantic. "When you hear the songs, you remember having a beer with somebody. You'd be singing these songs over in a pub in England."
Choir director John O'Halloran said music offered many soldiers an escape when there was nowhere else to go, and many of those songs have stayed with soldiers long after they returned home.
"They knew most of these songs. They sung, they whistled them, they knew everything about them," he said.
Commander of the Maritime Forces Atlantic John Newton was also at the concert, where he said it was remarkable to see how the veterans were so affected by the familiar songs.
"I'm just struck by how they're so moved by it, still so many years later," he said.
Second World War veteran Norman Crewe said the concert is part of a larger Remembrance Day tribute to Canada's soldiers, and the service they've given to the country over the years.
"Remember what the Armed Forces did," he said. "Everything we did, I myself am really proud."
With a report from CTV Atlantic's Kelland Sundahl
