[Mighty Guy] A Selection of Easy-to-Sing Songs by Akira Kobayashi
Born in 1938, Akira Kobayashi—known as the “Mighty Guy,” a true legend among legends and one of the last of the so-called silver screen stars—continues to work actively even now in the 2020s, well into his late eighties.
A towering figure who has left his mark on Japanese entertainment history as both an actor and a singer, he even wrote the lyrics himself for his long-awaited 2022 single, “Ganbare Wakazō” (“Hang in There, Young Fella”), hinting that he’ll keep energizing Japan through various activities going forward.
Kobayashi’s songs are also hugely popular at karaoke.
In this article, we’ve selected and compiled tracks that are especially easy for beginners to sing.
If you’re a younger listener curious about enka or Showa-era pop, be sure to check them out!
- [Final Boss] A Collection of Easy-to-Sing Songs by Sachiko Kobayashi [2026]
- [Enka] Songs That Are Easy to Sing Even for the Tone-Deaf [Male Singer Edition]
- [Sub-chan] A Collection of Easy-to-Sing Songs by Saburo Kitajima [2026]
- [Japan’s Best Vocalist] Fukuda Kohei’s Easy-to-Sing Karaoke Songs
- [For Beginners] Recommended Enka Masterpieces for Karaoke — Male Singers Edition
- [Queen of Enka] A Collection of Easy-to-Sing Songs by Sayuri Ishikawa [2026]
- [2026] Easy Enka Songs Recommended for Karaoke – Male Singers Edition
- [Treasure of Powerful Enka] Takashi Hosokawa’s Easy-to-Sing Songs
- Queen of Enka: A roundup of Aki Yashiro’s easy-to-sing songs
- 【2026】Recommended Enka by Male Singers with Captivating High Notes
- [Flower News] A Collection of Hiroshi Takeshima’s Easy-to-Sing Songs [2026]
- The Allure of Deep Vocals: A Collection of Yutaka Yamakawa’s Easy-to-Sing Songs [2026]
- From Comic Songs to Enka: Easy-to-Sing Songs by Ikuzo Yoshi [2026]
[Might Guy] A roundup of easy-to-sing songs by Akira Kobayashi (1–10)
wandererKobayashi Akira
Asahi Kobayashi’s early song “Sasurai.” Over his long career, Kobayashi’s vocal phrasing and musical style evolved, but even in this early work, you can hear the high, sustained notes that became his trademark.
That said, compared to his mid-career long tones, they are still relatively short, and there aren’t sections that emphasize sheer vocal power.
There’s also very little kobushi (ornamental melisma), so as long as you can handle the range, anyone should be able to sing it without trouble.
Consider adding it to your repertoire.
I’m sorryKobayashi Akira
The piece “Gomen ne” stands out for its melancholy melody and lyrics.
While it’s classified as kayōkyoku (Japanese pop enka), the A melody shows strong enka elements.
That said, it doesn’t feature the complex pitch bends (kobushi) typical of enka, making it relatively easy to sing.
However, the range is somewhat wide, and a sustained high note appears near the end of the chorus, so take care there.
The low notes are fairly low as well, which might make it tricky to find a comfortable key.
If you find parts un-singable, try focusing on resonating the sound in the back of your head.
A Migratory Bird with a GuitarKobayashi Akira
Akira Kobayashi’s classic “Guitar o Motta Wataridori” is strongly infused with elements of Western pop.
The song is based on doo-wop, a musical genre that rose to popularity in the 1950s.
While doo-wop has roots in Black music, this track’s melody leans toward a country-flavored pop reminiscent of Elvis Presley, and it’s arranged with a gentle, understated melodic line throughout.
Perhaps to suit that melody, the song features a relatively narrow vocal range for a Kobayashi number.
The long tones aren’t difficult, and there are no intricate melismatic twists like kobushi, so consider adding it to your repertoire.
[Mighty Guy] A roundup of Akira Kobayashi’s easy-to-sing songs (11–20)
Song of FarewellKobayashi Akira
Akira Kobayashi’s atypical work “Sekibetsu no Uta.” This piece is a cover song with a few minor arrangements; the original is a Chuo University student song.
Perhaps because it was composed in the early Showa era, it has very little pop influence, and its melody lands somewhere between a military march and enka.
Even so, the song is sung throughout in the low to low-mid range, with no sudden rises or drops in pitch.
While the monotony of the vocal line can make it harder to convey intensity, it’s extremely easy to sing—so consider adding it to your repertoire.
I’m appearing under my former name.Kobayashi Akira
Surprisingly, many of Akira Kobayashi’s songs have strong pop elements, but that’s not the case with “Mukashi no Namae de Deteimasu.” While it’s nominally classified as kayōkyoku, its structure and vocal lines are entirely enka, and at the end of the chorus you get a kobushi that’s not much different from traditional enka.
The presence of kobushi might make it seem difficult, but in this song the pitch shifts within the kobushi never change by more than three notes, so it’s by no means highly challenging.
JunkoKobayashi Akira
Junko, a famous song by Akira Kobayashi released in 1975.
This piece features a melody close to light, tropical-tinged pop—a style favored by artists like Elvis Presley—and it carries a very gentle, calm atmosphere throughout.
Naturally, the tempo is very slow, and while the vocal line is notable for its sustained notes, the pitch movement itself is quite simple.
If you can hold solid long tones in the mid-to-high range and above, you should be able to sing it smoothly without encountering any real difficulties.
Akira’s Zundoko SongKobayashi Akira
Enka has a standard rhythmic pattern known as the “zundoko-bushi.” In recent years, Kiyoshi Hikawa’s “Kiyoshi no Zundoko-bushi” has become especially famous.
This “Akira no Zundoko-bushi” is Akira Kobayashi’s take on the zundoko-bushi, and compared to the typical version, it mixes in elements of jazz and boogie.
While it does include phrases characteristic of enka, there’s very little kobushi-style ornamentation; instead, the song relies on dynamic contrast for impact.
The vocal line is easy to sing even for those who struggle with traditional enka phrasing, so consider adding it to your repertoire.