A collection of back number’s heartfelt masterpieces: popular love songs

Big wrong answerback number

back number – The Big Wrong Answer (full)

It’s a pop-rock number whose message—living powerfully while acknowledging our weaknesses and imperfections—hits straight to the heart.

Shimizu Iyori’s worldview captures not only the bittersweetness of love but also that raw, human grit, which is a big part of the appeal.

Released in August 2018 as their 18th single, this song was written as the theme for the film Gintama 2: Rules Are Made To Be Broken.

It became a hit, earning strong support and reaching No.

3 on the Oricon weekly chart.

With Koichi Tsutaya participating in the arrangement, the band’s sound has a driving energy that lifts your spirits the moment you listen.

Put it on when you’ve lost confidence or when you just want to get fired up without overthinking.

It’ll surely give you a push forward.

yellowback number

back number – Yellow

This is a poignant ballad that overlays feelings for an unattainable person—and emotions that can neither move forward nor turn back—onto the colors of a traffic light.

It was released in September 2021 as the 21st single.

Since it was written as the theme song for ABEMA’s dating show “Koi to Ookami ni wa Damasarenai” (Don’t Be Fooled by the Wolf), many of you have probably heard it.

It was later included on the album “Humor.” The delicate nuances of a heart that becomes unable to act the more it longs for someone—so vividly portrayed by Iyori Shimizu—come through with aching clarity.

Takeshi Kobayashi also participated in the arrangement, and the tender, beautiful sound is truly heart-wrenching.

When you feel left behind, listening to it will gently stay by your side.

On nights when you’re timid about love, why not soak in it quietly, alone?

reunionback number

Reunion

Released in December 2016, this song is a lavish collaboration.

Produced by Takeshi Kobayashi, it features Motohiro Hata and back number performing together, singing about emotions that sway in the city and the theme of “reunion” that arrives in fleeting moments.

The contrast between Iyori Shimizu’s and Motohiro Hata’s voices is wonderful, evoking warmth within the bittersweetness.

It was used as the CM song for Tokyo Metro’s “Find my Tokyo.” campaign starring Satomi Ishihara, so many listeners will likely recognize it.

In addition, the limited first edition B of the best album “Encore” includes a short film based on this work.

It’s a track you’ll want to listen to quietly when you wish to remember something important amid busy days.

on a bright nightback number

Akarui Yoruni

Rather than simply lamenting the darkness of night, this forward-looking perspective that seeks out the small lights within it feels cleansing to the soul.

It’s a track included on the album “MAGIC,” released in March 2019.

Many will likely remember hearing its refreshing, catchy chorus from the Kirin Beer “Tanrei Green Label” commercial.

Although not released as a single, the song is deeply loved by fans as a presence that brightens the entire album.

If you listen to it on nights when worries and anxieties keep you awake, you’ll feel a soothing sense of relief, as if the tension in your shoulders gently melts away.

Why not try it as background music for a relaxing time alone, paired with your favorite drink—alcoholic or a warm beverage?

With love from a certain futureback number

back number – With Love from a Certain Future [MOS Burger “Eating HAPPY” Commercial Song]

It’s a song filled with the quiet happiness we feel through everyday meals and the warmth that feels like a cheer sent from our future selves.

The lyrics gently embrace the anxiety and frailty we carry now without ever denying them, resonating deeply in the heart.

It beautifully fuses back number’s signature band sound with a melody that sits close to everyday life.

Written for MOS Burger’s new brand commercial in June 2025, it was released as a digital single.

The production also reunites them with sugarbeans for the first time since the album “Humor.” Why not give it a listen when you’re feeling a bit down or on a night when you want to accept yourself? Iyori Shimizu’s vocals will quietly give you a supportive nudge right by your side.

golden hourback number

Golden Hour

Despite its glittering title, this track stands out with a hefty rock sound and distorted guitars.

It embodies the band’s resolve to keep stepping onto the stage without settling for the status quo.

The song is included on their seventh album, “Humor,” released in January 2023.

While it doesn’t have a specific tie-in, it was written late in the album’s production and plays a key role in threading a backbone through the whole work.

Shimizu Iyori’s lyrics—confronting the struggles behind flashy success and calmly assessing where they stand now—are sure to strike listeners to the core.

It will powerfully push the backs of working adults fighting day by day and those trying to take on new challenges.

It’s a number with overwhelming intensity that makes you want to experience it live.

If I become a superstarback number

Super Star Ni Nattara

This is a track that opens their major-label debut album “Superstar,” released in October 2011, and it epitomizes the band’s early intensity.

It sets a driving sound against a powerful sense of impatience to change the status quo and the fear of a relationship with someone precious coming to an end.

Through the hypothetical vow to come and get you if he ever becomes someone who shines, Iyori Shimizu’s earnest feelings as he confronts his own weakness are deeply moving.

Although not an A-side single, the song was selected for the December 2016 best-of album “Encore,” and it has continued to be cherished as an important live staple that unites the entire venue.

If you’re struggling with the frustration of wanting to change but not being able to, listening to this song will surely give you a push forward.