Spring songs from the early Showa era: a collection of kayōkyoku and shōka that evoke spring

Hate and the spring breezeFujimoto Nisankichi

Hate and Spring Breeze Fumiko Fujimoto

Have you ever found yourself, carried by the spring breeze, suddenly thinking of someone? The song Nikuya Harukaze is charming in how the word “nikuya” in the title doesn’t mean hatred, but rather expresses a chic, Edo-style feeling like “how delightfully irresistible” or “so stylish.” Released by Victor in April of 1931 as a new record, it features lyrics by Shinsui Itō and music by Keizō Saitō, radiating a modern allure as a “jazz-style popular song” of its time.

It’s sung by Fumiko Fujimoto, famed as the “Nightingale Geisha,” whose beautifully trained melodic phrasing from the hauta tradition blends with an urbane sensibility to transport listeners to a modern spring of early Shōwa.

It’s the perfect track for when the spring air puts you in a slightly retro mood to enjoy a drink, or when you want to touch the refined stirrings of an adult romance.

When the white flowers bloomOkamoto Atsurō

When the White Flowers Bloom – Song by Chieko Baisho (Japanese actress, singer, and voice actress)

Let me introduce “Shiroi Hana no Saku Koro” performed by Atsuo Okamoto! It’s a perfect song for March, a month that hints at the arrival of spring while still retaining traces of winter.

Its memorable lyrics poetically depict parting from a loved one, evoking each person’s own landscape of memories.

How about listening to this song together with older adults in the gentle spring sunlight and reflecting on the past? It may spark warm, nostalgic conversations.

It’s a heartwarming piece that can also be used in music therapy.

Elegy of SpringTōkairin Tarō

Spring Elegy (Taro Shoji)

With its very simple lyrics and a beautifully resonant title, “Spring Elegy.” I can picture the scene: a carriage carrying the beloved “you” heading off along a mountain pass, while the narrator, knowing you will never return, is sunk in sorrow.

Was it spring, when the mountain flowers were in full, gorgeous bloom, that the carriage departed? That unfulfilled, delicate longing leaves a poignant yet noble impression—perhaps because it carries the scents of Japan’s seasons and a sense of its culture.

And the presence of Taro Shoji, known for his distinctive style of singing upright and still, wearing pince-nez glasses and a tailcoat, is charming too—he evokes the gentlemanly spirit of the Showa era.

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hiyori

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Though the white roses bloomFujiyama Ichirō

Though White Roses Bloom — Ichirō Fujiyama

With its upbeat tempo and the fashionable, modern words found in its lyrics, the popular song of the time “Even Though the White Roses Bloom” was a hit composed by Masao Koga with lyrics by Sonosuke Sato.

It served as the theme song for the 1937 film of the same title, performed by Ichiro Fujiyama, famed for “Blue Mountain Range.” His resonant, classically trained vocals are especially captivating.

Graduating at the top of his class from Tokyo College of Music, Fujiyama later became a beloved national singer with numerous major hits.

Closely aligned with the film’s storyline, this contemporary popular tune rhythmically expresses a faint, budding love, and it was cherished by many.

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nikki

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Elegy of SpringShōji Shirō

Spring Elegy (Shirō Shōji)

Spring Elegy, which conveys the atmosphere of early Showa to the present day, is a masterpiece sung with heartfelt emotion by Shiro Shoji.

Released in 1934, this song, which entrusts its plea to flowers symbolizing lost love and the transience of spring while yielding to the tides of the era, became a foundation that enriched the music scene thereafter.

Shoji’s voice gently accompanies the lyrics that depict the pain of parting, resulting in a performance that resonates deeply.

It evokes a certain nostalgia and a stirring emotion that anyone can feel.