[Minna no Uta] Beloved Across Generations: Nostalgic Classics and Popular Songs
We’re introducing some nostalgic songs from Minna no Uta, a program that has continued to produce countless classics.
I’m sure each of you has that one song that makes you think, “When it comes to Minna no Uta, it has to be this one!”
The pieces that stick in your memory may vary by generation, but in this article we’ve focused on songs that everyone knows.
They’re all tunes that feel nostalgic to anyone—just seeing the title will have you humming along before you know it.
If you’re thinking, “I want to listen to the classics from Minna no Uta,” be sure to check these out.
Let’s listen to these timeless favorites, loved across generations, with family and friends, and keep passing them down through song.
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[Minna no Uta] Beloved Through the Ages: Nostalgic Classics and Popular Songs (21–30)
Big Grandmakondō toshiki
It’s a bright yet tear-jerking “Minna no Uta” song packed with love for Grandma! It’s sung by Toshiki Kondo, who’s active as a ukulele player, and it’s included on his 2018 mini-album “UKULELE DAYS.” The lyrics, which directly reflect his feelings for his own grandmother, will make you smile just by reading them.
And yet, strangely enough, as you keep listening, your own grandma’s face comes to mind and you can’t help but feel a little sentimental.
If you’re a grandma’s kid, don’t miss it!
Horse’s tail, pig’s tail.Sakushi: Abe Hitomi / Sakkyoku: Yamamoto Naozumi
Broadcast on NHK’s Minna no Uta in August 1983, this song is a humorous children’s tune themed around the tails of a horse and a pig.
Written by Hitomi Abe and composed by Naosumi Yamamoto, it was selected as an outstanding piece in NHK’s Children’s Song Lyrics and Composition Contest.
The story charmingly likens a boy’s puppy-love—teasing the girl he likes—to animal tails, sweetly capturing that childish urge to tug on her pigtails.
Sung by Kyu Sakamoto and the NHK Tokyo Children’s Choir, it became well-loved and was rebroadcast in 2010 and 2015.
There are also covers by various artists, including Seiji Tanaka, and it is widely sung in kindergarten and nursery school choirs.
Its lively melody and catchy refrain make it perfect for parents and children to sing together.
All mothersamerika min’yō
This is a song arranged for Japanese audiences from a folk tune that originated in 19th-century America.
Tomoko Nakayama’s Japanese lyrics pose questions like why a horse goes clip-clop as it runs and why a piglet’s tail curls—“no one knows why.” Easy-to-remember onomatopoeia is repeated to the rhythm, making it appealing and well-suited for creating parody verses.
Sung on NHK’s children’s programs, this piece has reached many homes and childcare settings through performances by Yuko Kanzaki and Osamu Sakata.
Combined with fingerplay or marching movements, it’s a perfect nursery song for parents and children to enjoy together.
A small nut
Clutching a small nut in his hand, the boy runs off.
This song is about a child who lives on with memories that are no longer there.
I remember feeling fear and sorrow, even as a child.
Only after losing it do I recall the important things my father and mother used to say.
It’s a heart-wrenching song that conveys, from a child’s perspective, the foolishness of humans who only realize things after they’re gone.
Mountain MusiciansDoitsu min’yō
An endearing, picture book-like piece in which the animals of the forest become musicians and hold a concert.
In this song, mountain friends like squirrels and little birds appear one after another, each showing off their favorite instrument.
With a structure that layers on words imitating the timbre of the instruments, it carries a lively joy that makes your body start moving all on its own.
It became widely known in Japan after being featured in April 1964 on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” sung by Dark Ducks.
Since then, it has been sung for many years on educational programs and the like.
Part of its charm is that you can enjoy it with gestures and hand motions, too.
Tsutomu from the Yamaguchi family
A song with a striking title that boldly features a full personal name: Tsutomu Yamaguchi.
It portrays the feelings of a girl who’s thinking about Tsutomu, who’s feeling down because his mom has gone back to the countryside.
While the impactful title and the child-friendly melody naturally draw your eyes and ears, a closer look at the lyrics reveals a gentle, compassionate heart that cares for others.
Sugarcane field
It’s a song sung by Ryoko Moriyama that depicts scenes of Okinawa.
It conveys the horrors of war and shocked many people.
Songs like this are often turned into parodies, but when you listen to it as an adult, you realize, “That’s not something we should do.” It’s a song that reminds us once again that we must never go to war again.