[Classic Camp Songs] Recommended Tracks to Enjoy with Family and Friends in Nature

Camping charmjinpei/mori no ki jidou gasshoudan

Camping charm, camp song

A perfect song for campfire nights, it feels like a heartwarming little charm.

It brings friends together in nature, fostering a sense of unity and sparking conversations about dreams and hopes.

This piece opened the April 2007 album “Everyone’s Camp Songs” and became a favorite among many children.

Later, in December 2017, it was chosen again as the first track on the album “The Best: Camp Songs,” becoming a timeless classic loved across generations.

It’s also highly trusted in educational settings and is used in preschools and children’s events.

Gather around the campfire, sing together with hand motions, and you’ll create unforgettable memories.

It’s a must-listen when you want to fully enjoy outdoor activities with kids or friends.

Campfire PrayerInguranndo min’yō

Scout Song “Campfire Prayer” | with lyrics

On a camp night, is there any tune that resonates more deeply as a song softly hummed before the flickering flames? Its original form is an old English love song, which in Japan was transformed by Chuji Ozaki into lyrics like a hymn, imbued with gratitude and prayers to nature.

Its pure and solemn melody is a major allure of the piece, with the power to unite the hearts of participants.

Though not widely available as an official recording, it is cherished as an indispensable piece in Boy Scout songbooks, and a survey by the Ibaraki Council of the Scout Association of Japan deemed it “worth preserving forever.” Since around July 2014, various performance videos have also been shared.

Raise your voices together with your companions around the campfire, and it will become an unforgettable and moving memory.

Forest CampSakushi: Furuta Seiichirou

Forest Camp

You can almost feel the clear forest air and the warmth of a campfire shared with friends.

Suited to gentle singing on a camping night, its calm and memorable melody has surely been cherished by many.

The lyrics—filled with the natural beauty of dawn, friendship among companions, and the anticipation of new discoveries—are deeply moving.

It is said that the lyricist, Seiichiro Furuta, devoted himself to youth development, including establishing Japan’s first Cub Scout pack in Kobe in 1923.

From the 1960s onward, this song spread through songbooks and has been passed down in Scouting and outdoor education settings.

When everyone sings it together around the campfire, it becomes an unforgettable memory.

For those who wish to deepen bonds in nature, this is truly a song worth experiencing.

World of Starssakushi: Kawaji Ryūkō / sakkyoku: C. Konvuāsu

World of Stars

This piece features a gentle, serene melody that resonates in the heart, inviting thoughts to wander into a night sky strewn with glittering stars.

The song sets familiar Japanese lyrics by poet Kawaji Ryūkō to a hymn melody that was originally beloved overseas.

Its appeal lies in how it expresses awe for the mysteries of the universe and the beauty of nature in a way anyone can relate to.

Adopted into elementary school music textbooks in 1952, it has been sung across generations ever since.

The NHK Tokyo Children’s Choir’s rendition is included on the album “[Best!] Minna no…,” and Keishi Mukaizato’s sanshin arrangement appears on the album “Heart and Mind: The Breeze of Ryukyu Played on the Sanshin.” Humming it around a campfire is sure to create unforgettable memories.

It also adds a warm emotional touch to quiet moments spent in nature.

To become friendsSakushi: Shinzawa Toshihiko / Sakkyoku: Nakagawa Hirotaka

To Become Friends — Song: NEUTRINO (with lyrics)

This is a memorable song with a warm, gentle melody that celebrates meeting people and connecting heart to heart.

The lyrics tenderly embrace the loneliness everyone feels, and they directly convey the importance of caring for others and the joy of fostering friendship, softly wrapping the listener’s heart.

Toshihiko Shinzawa and Hirotaka Nakagawa have left a significant mark on the world of children’s music.

The piece they created was included on Tora ya Boshiten’s 1987 album “Sekai Jū no Kodomotachi ga,” and it remains enduringly popular today.

In February 2006, it was also featured on the compilation album “Omoide Ippai! Sotsuen Song.” Sung at graduation ceremonies and similar occasions, this song becomes an unforgettable memory when everyone gathers around a campfire to sing it together.

It’s sure to gently nudge anyone taking a new step forward.

You children who herald the dawnsakushi: Kasagi Tooru / sakkyoku: Hosoda Noboru

You children who herald the dawn

As a classic camp song passed down across generations, many of you may already know this heartwarming piece.

The lyrics were written by folk singer Toru Kasagi, with music composed by Noboru Hosoda.

Each word, imbued with a gentle gaze toward the children who will carry the future, seeps into the heart on a simple, beautiful melody.

It was created as the theme song for the 1977 educational documentary film “The Road to Dawn,” and there is also a 1978 recording sung by Mitsuko Horie.

It was included in the album “Camp Song” in 2007.

Perfect for singing together around a campfire, it will also add a moving touch to occasions celebrating new beginnings, such as kindergarten graduation ceremonies.

Yaho-hoSakata Osamu

With hand motions: “Yaho-ho” – A popular song from Okaasan to Issho, children’s song, kids’ song

This work, marked by its call-and-response phrases that echo like a mountain echo, is brimming with irrepressibly bright energy that makes your heart skip just by listening.

Created by singer-songwriter Osamu Sakata, it features a simple, easy-to-remember melody that charmingly conveys the joy of kids raising their voices out in nature.

This uplifting number is included on the album “With Jackie: Everyone Loves Children’s Songs,” released in April 2015.

It has also been featured on NHK programs related to “Okaasan to Issho,” and a new version with fresh vocals appeared in the winter of 2023, showing how the song continues to be sung across generations.

Gathered around a campfire, raising your voices together, it’s sure to become an unforgettable memory.