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In the spirit of the stage play “Oh, What a Lovely War,” Here is a musical tour through Canada’s military history:
Begin with the Seven Years War. “Evangeline,” tells the story of the Acadiens:
An English soldier’s song from the same period: “The Girl I Left Behind Me”:
The Girl I Left Behind Me
“I'm lonesome since I crossed the hill,
And o'er the moor and valley,
Such grievous thoughts my heart do fill,
Since parting with my Sally.
I seek no more the fine or gay,
For each does but remind me,
How swift the hours did pass away,
With the girl I left behind me.
Oh, ne'er shall I forget the night
The stars were bright above me,
And gently lent their silvery light,
When first she vowed to love me.
But now I'm bound to Brighton Camp
Kind heaven, then, pray guide me,
And send me safely back again
To the girl I left behind me.”
Then “Brave Wolfe” for the Battle of the Plains of Abraham.
A chorus of “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” and the flag of the incipient USA.
“The Rebels,” a Loyalist song of the time.
Ye brave honest subjects who dare to be loyal,
And have stood the brunt of every trial,
Of hunting shirts and rifle guns;
Come listen awhile and I'll tell you a song;
I'll show you those Yankees are all in the wrong,
Who, with blustering look and most awkward gait,
'Gainst their lawful sovereign dare for to prate,
With their hunting shirts and rifle guns…
Cut the triumphalism with a round of “Barrett’s Privateers.”
Guns are heard. The voice of Thomas Jefferson:
“The acquisition of Canada this year, as far as the neighborhood of Quebec, will be a mere matter of marching; & will give us experience for the attack of Halifax the next, & the final expulsion of England from the American continent.”
Segue to the War of 1812: “Come All Ye Bold Canadians,”
and “The Lower Canadian Militia Song.” Can’t find the music.
Le matin, des le point du jour,
On entend ce maudit tambour,
Maudit tambour et maudit exercice,
Toi, pauvr' soldat, tu en as d'la fatigue.
Ils nous font mettre dans les rangs,
Les officiers et les sergents,
L'un dit: recule et l'autre dit: avance!
Toi, pauvr' soldat, t'en faut de la patience.
Nos sergents et nos officiers
Sont bien traites dan leurs quartiers,
Nos capitain' boiv' le vin et la biere
Toi, pauvr' soldat, va boire a la riviere.
Qu'en a compose la chanson
C'est un tambour du bataillon
C'est un tambour en battant sa retraite
Toujours regrettant sa joli' maitresse
“Over the Hills and Far Away” for the British Regulars:
The lyrics might be modified to fit Canada—instead of “Flanders, Portugal and Spain,” “Queenston, Montreal, and Maine.”
Here's one for Laura Secord:
Next, the rebellions of 1837. A few good songs came out of that rebellion. “I’ll be a Tory,”
then “Up and War Them All, Willie!” Second song here.
Then “Un Canadien Errant.”
“The Battle of the Windmill” was a popular folk song around Prescott for a century.
Next, the Fenian Raids. For context, “The Bold Fenian Men.”
A Fenian Song:
An Anti-Fenian song:
The Riel Rebellion: “C’est au Champs de Bataille.” Lyrics supposedly written by Riel himself.
First World War: we have an embarrassment of riches. “Vive la Canadienne,” definitely.
“Why Can’t a Girl be a Soldier” for the feminists.
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/915511363578/
"The Recruiting Sergeant":
"The Princess Pat.”
And here’s an authentic 1915 war song from a Canadian collection that would be nicely multiculti. No idea of the tune, though.
“They Say that in the Army.” Verses can be inserted to reflect the Indian soldiers who were present, if not in the Canadian regiments. For example, “You ask for a biryani, and they give you intes-tine.”
Balance it out with “Wo alle Strassen enden” for the Germans.
Second World War: there’s a nice bit by the Happy Gang, to the tune of Colonel Bogey’s March: “Good Luck—And the Same to You.”
https://wartimecanada.ca/sites/default/files/documents/Good%20Luck_0.pdf
The D-Day Dodgers:
“North Atlantic Squadron,”
Stompin Tom had a clean version:
Afghanistan: Bryan Adams’ “Ric-A-Dam-Do”
And end with “Highway of Heroes”
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