It’s been 50 years of National Day Parades and the National Heritage Board has created an exhibition to mark this milestone.

We imagine what you might have overheard if you went back in time yourself.

1) “Wah, these people stand in the rain, so garang sia."

1968 was the year where it rained during the parade. 

Public morale was still low for a country that was barely three years old, and the rain, which left everyone drenched, caught everyone by surprise.

Col (Ret) Lau Kee Siong, who was part of the Guard of Honour at the time, told Mothership.sg: “The rain was so heavy it was like mist, and right in front of me, center of City Hall -- sitting at the corner of the row -- Lee Kuan Yew and his entire cabinet, white shirt, white trousers, in the rain. Nobody moved -- that left a mark on me."

It was a time when people thought Singapore couldn’t make it, Lau added. “You read in the papers, you hear it on the radio, you see it on the TV. Everybody talks about it. Singapore will not last -- few more years we’ll crawl back. But sitting right in front of me, in the rain, he (Lee Kuan Yew) and his cabinet were there. It showed one thing that they had the will to want to make it work.”

You might feel inspired. You might also feel inspired to bring an umbrella.

2) “Ten years already sia. Also hor, very hot leh.”

1975 saw the National Day Parade split into 13 selected centres island-wide.

Singapore was 10 years old at that time, and the nationalistic craze was there -- with excitement, enthusiasm, and a full day of celebration.

As a Straits Times reporter put it:

“Ten full years of nationhood they were celebrating! And many had grown up during those crucial, formative years when Singapore was moulded from a pimple on the world’s map into the dynamic cosmopolitian city that it is today.

As the noon sun hung lower and its sharp rays flared with greater intensity, beads of sweat dotted their foreheads and trickled down their backs.

But the participants marched relentlessly on. Perhaps Premier Lee Kuan Yew’s National Day 1974 message was still ringing in their ears: “There is one fundamental quality we have which nothing can change, and that is the verve, the vitality, the drive in our people.””

Or, as we would probably have put it: “SG10, very hot sia.”

3) “So packed, later confirm jam.”

1976 was the first time Singapore held its National Day Parade in the National Stadium, which was new at the time, though it probably wasn’t as expensive as our new National Stadium.

This was probably also the first time someone said "Wah jam ah, how?” at an NDP. The National Stadium offered about 60,000 seats, and despite that number, demand remained high.

Organisers also spaced out National Day celebrations throughout the island because Kallang was probably less accessible:

These National Day celebrations across the island occurred until 1983, when colour TV became ubiquitous amongst Singapore families and everyone could crowd around and watch some fireworks.

4) “Eh, later kena arrested for illegal gathering how?”

Inspired by the street celebrations of 1988’s National Day, Swing Singapore, which is a series of parties that were held from 1988 to 1992, saw 250,000 people "boogie, shimmy, shake or twist" to music which blasted from huge loudspeakers.

The mass gathering, which was organised by the Singapore Armed Forces Reservists' Association (SAFRA), was approved by the then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

The first one, held on 28 August 1988, was right the middle of GE1988 election campaigning, and was presumed to have political overtones.

But people couldn’t have too much fun -- alcohol was banned at the event, and so was politics.

Later years saw new dances, huge video screens and mobile stages being brought in. 

Swing Singapore later became a countdown party for National Day as part of National Day celebrations.

5) “That song very catchy hor?”

National Day Parades have seen various catchy tunes being sung by audience as ice-breaking performances throughout the years.

The classics -- Stand Up for Singapore, Count on Me, Singapore and We Are Singapore were really created by advertiser Hugh Harrison. Harrison had the idea for Count on Me on a flight from Hong Kong to Singapore, when he thought of young people telling Singapore’s leaders "you can count on us". (No stress.)

Then there’s our informal National Anthem, Home, which made its debut in 1998 as Singapore celebrated its 33rd birthday.

It was so catchy that it crowded out the other NDP song, titled City For The World.

If you went "Huh?", here it is:

" width="760" height="428" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen">

After listening to this song, you probably will forgive Home for crowding out the competition with its heartwarming tunes.

Home has since been the staple of several other NDPs - the 2004, 2010 and 2015 NDP all saw Home being belted out by different artistes.

If you're the patriotic sort that would want to time travel to explore Singapore's National Day Parade history, you can head to the National Heritage Board's travelling exhibition, from June 10 to Aug. 9.

Top image from the National Museum of Singapore

If you like what you read, follow us on Facebook and Twitter to get the latest updates.