Did you know that popular National Day songs ‘Count On Me Singapore,’ ‘Stand Up For Singapore’ and ‘We Are Singapore’ were written by Canadian Hugh Harrison in the 1980s? ‘Count On Me’, arranged by Singaporean jazz icon Jeremy Monteiro, was the first song designed for crowd singing at the National Day Parade (NDP) in 1986. The song release sold more than 100,000 cassette tapes, beating pop music albums. Here’s a fun fact: The original lyrics of ‘Count On Me, Singapore’ were a little different from what we sing today. Harrison wrote, ‘We have a dream’ but that was swapped out for something more concrete - ‘We can achieve.’ ‘Count On Me’ was produced by ad agency McCann-Erickson as a response to Singapore’s first post-independence recession in 1985. Hugh explained that the song was meant to combat “negativism in the youth” who were “losing heart” during the recession. His lyrics were inspired by his vision of young people saying “Don’t fear that we’re soft, you can count on us.” ALSO WATCH: How Singapore’s National Anthem & Flag Nearly Turned Out Different: https://youtu.be/aAE6tC98xpw What Makes Singapore's National Day 2020 Celebration Remarkable?: https://youtu.be/Bz86L_JZ0ZM Singapore 1980s: A Nation Is Tested: https://youtu.be/neDx9U1kLRQ For more, SUBSCRIBE to CNA INSIDER! https://cna.asia/insideryoutubesub Follow CNA INSIDER on: Instagram: https://ift.tt/2C3sZiR Facebook: https://ift.tt/2PPEuNA Website: https://cna.asia/cnainsider
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