His ship helped build the Mulberry harbour at Gold Beach, so that troops, vehicles and supplies could be brought ashore.
Years later, Jim went back to Normandy for the first time since the war. He thought he had it all in perspective. Then he saw children playing on the beach.
“I was sort of overwhelmed with recollection of what I’ve seen and moved to tears by the contrast, as a lot of veterans were,” he said.
That visit inspired him to write his first song, “The Shores of Normandy,” in 1969. It took him a long time before he could sing it in public.
On June 6, 2014, exactly 70 years after D-Day, Jim stood on the stage of London’s Royal Albert Hall for BBC Radio 2’s D-Day 70 Years On concert and sang it with the BBC Concert Orchestra. He was 85 years old.
Listen as he sings in remembrance of his crew mates and the thousands of others who died.
In 2019, he released the song as a single to raise money for the British Normandy Memorial. It went to No. 1 on Amazon’s singles chart and reached No. 72 on the UK chart.
Jim passed away in 2020 at the age of 92. His song lives on.
Do you have a loved one who served on D-Day? Share this song in their honor.