[80s Graduation Songs] Nostalgic Classics & Hits That Have Become Standards

Please give me wingsakai tori

Red Bird “Please Give Me Wings” 1971

A beloved national classic that has been included in textbooks and that almost everyone has hummed at least once, “Tsubasa o Kudasai” (“Please Give Me Wings”).

Its melody, brimming with hope as if soaring into the sky, and its lyrics filled with a heartfelt wish for the future deliver a moving experience perfect for a graduation day—the start of a new journey.

The song first appeared as the B-side to the folk group Akai Tori’s 1971 single “Takeda no Komoriuta.” It was originally written for the 1970 music contest “Gonen Popular Festival” (Nemu Popular Festival), and later became established as a cheer song for Japan’s national soccer team.

As a standard number passed down across generations, it’s a wonderful choice to listen to when expressing gratitude to mentors and friends, or when you need the courage to take a new step forward.

Full of memoriesH₂O

Full of Memories / H2O (Full/Lyrics Included) covered by SKYzART

A classic by H2O that began appearing in music textbooks around the 2000s.

It was used as the ending theme for the anime “Miyuki.” The song has been covered by many artists across various genres, including May J.

and Megumi Ogata, and has been featured in many tie-ins, making it a beloved track for many years.

It evokes memories preserved in graduation albums.

From the perspective of one’s now fully grown self, it fondly portrays how, at the time of graduation—when facing those memories and taking a step closer to adulthood—one was still quite a child.

For those graduating now, it’s a song that offers hope: that the anxieties and uncertainties you feel today will one day make sense.

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GraduationHikaru GENJI

Hikaru GENJI Graduation (1988)

The B-side of Hikaru GENJI’s second single “Garasu no Jūdai,” released in 1987.

This song is about graduation, and it has actually been sung at schools as a graduation song.

It’s also frequently covered at Johnny’s Jr.

concerts and the like.

It embraces the loneliness and anxiety felt at graduation ceremonies and gives you a push to leap into a new world.

Although it’s a hit from the ’80s, I think it’s a song that would still leave a lasting impression if sung at a modern graduation ceremony.

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sasashina

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Spring sceneryMinamino Yoko

Harugeishiki by Yoko Minamino

A nostalgic song from Yoko Minamino—“Nan-no”—the Cinderella who emerged from the Miss Magazine Grand Prix.

Back then, she and fellow Miss Magazine alum Yuki Saito split the popularity right down the middle.

Both of them appeared in Sukeban Deka, didn’t they? Were you Team Yuki-chan or Team Nan-no? As for this song, Haru Gesiki (Spring Scenery), it may not have the flashiness of the hits Rakuen no Door or Kaze no Madrigal, but it’s a truly wonderful track that lays bare the bittersweet feelings of a girl just as she is.

The lyric “Even when we move up a grade, even when we graduate, I’m still one year older than you” is exquisitely heart-fluttering! I wish this song would get much more attention as a graduation tune.

GraduationKurasawa Atsumi

Atsumi Kurasawa - Graduation

A song that chronicles an unrequited love from youth, “Sotsugyo” (Graduation).

It’s Junmi Kurasawa’s fourth single, released in 1985.

At first, it sounds like a breakup song, yet the strangely bright sound felt puzzling.

But when you get to the end of the lyrics, the reason becomes clear: at graduation, they discover their feelings are mutual.

If you listen to it during graduation season, you might just find yourself tempted to check the desk of the person you like (lol).

With such a happy ending, graduation doesn’t seem so bad.

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Spring La! La! La!Ishino Mako

Spring La! La! La! by Mako Ishino

This is a signature song by Mako Ishino, released on January 1, 1980—the very first day of the 1980s.

Its unique lyrics deconstruct the kanji for “spring” and reimagine it as “the day of three people,” evoking the sense of excitement that spring brings.

It’s a hidden gem among Showa-era idol songs, the kind you find yourself wanting to listen to during graduation season, when new encounters and farewells arrive at the same time.

Goodbye, Student StreetNishimura Tomomi

Tomomi Nishimura_Sayonara no Gakusei-dori

This is a later-period hit song by Tomomi Nishimura, the original soft-and-gentle idol who won the Grand Prix by a landslide in the first Miss Momoco Club contest hosted by the magazine Momoco.

The lyrics—“I didn’t have the courage to tell you I love you, but that’s part of who I am”—follow the classic path of Showa-era idols, suffused with the bittersweet pain of graduating and going separate ways.

The sound that won’t let go of the listener’s ears still feels comforting even today.

By the way, back then she was known as one of the ‘Peach Trio’ alongside Nami Shimada and Miyuki Sugiura—what nostalgia!