Back Number Unrequited Love Songs: Popular Song Ranking [2026]

HAPPY BIRTHDAYback number1rank/position

back number – HAPPY BIRTHDAY (full)

A three-piece rock band whose heartrending lyrics and moving melodies resonate with many, back number’s 20th single.

Released in February 2019, the music video—featuring a performance in an empty restaurant that conveys loneliness—also leaves a strong impression.

It deftly portrays the bittersweetness of unrequited love, and with Iyori Shimizu’s sharp guitar work and Takeshi Kobayashi’s production, it pierces deeply into listeners’ hearts.

It’s a highly recommended track for anyone experiencing unrequited love right now.

Ms. Hanako on a high pedestalback number2rank/position

back number – Takane no Hanako-san (full)

With their realistic psychological portrayals, back number captures the hearts of many fans.

Their eighth single, released in June 2013, truly feels like “a song packed full of one-sided-love imaginings.” You can’t help but nod along at the poignant sense of distance—being nothing more than “a friend of a friend” to the person you like—and at the way you get depressed by imagining the kind of partner they’d want and deciding you don’t measure up.

In contrast to those lyrics, the brisk, refreshing sound gently propels that frustrating, unrequited longing forward.

The track is also included on the album “Love Story,” and it was used in a commercial in 2019.

Wishing to be loved yet unable to take that final step—this is a one-sided love song that will surely resonate and stay close to your heart.

loveback number3rank/position

back number – Love (Short ver.)

Back number is a three-piece band that captures the hearts of many listeners with poignant lyrics and melodies.

Here is a classic song representing their early work, released in March 2012.

This piece is a sentimental number depicting a gaze fixed on you from a school building window and an earnest wish to confess one’s feelings before graduation.

In addition to being used as an ending theme on shows like TV Asahi’s “Music-ru TV,” it was included on the album “blues” and the best-of album “Encore,” and has continued to be loved over the years, surpassing 100 million total streams.

The band sound, enriched with strings, tightens the chest and evokes the bittersweetness of youth that everyone has experienced.

It’s a song you’ll want to hear in March—especially if you’re facing graduation with unspoken feelings or want to immerse yourself in memories of a fleeting love.

Happinessback number4rank/position

Happiness / back number (cover)

Speaking of bittersweet love songs, you can’t leave out this track by back number.

She truly loves him, yet she sits by his side watching him fall for someone else… all while wishing for his happiness.

She’s probably just too kind, isn’t she? A love that can’t be put into words—what would you do?

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I like you, but it seems you don’t really like me.back number5rank/position

I like you, but it seems you don't really like me / back number (cover)

As its straightforward title, “I Like You, But You Don’t Seem to Like Me,” suggests, this back number song expresses the feelings of confessing love only to be turned down.

Included on their fourth major studio album, Chandelier, released in 2015, the track was never released as a single yet remains highly popular among fans, and it even inspired the short film “Everything I Can Still Do for You.” Sung from a male perspective, it’s a heartrending piece that captures emotions that can’t be contained.

Heroineback number6rank/position

back number – Heroine (full)

A signature ballad by back number that beautifully captures the crisp winter air and the bittersweet ache of unrequited love.

Even while knowing they can’t be the main character in the other person’s story, the narrator’s pure wish to stay by their side evokes a moving, heart-tightening feeling—even for those without similar experiences.

Produced by Takeshi Kobayashi, the song opens with a striking organ tone, followed by Iyori Shimizu’s warm yet heartrending vocals that gently seep into the soul.

Released in January 2015 as their 11th single, it also drew attention as the CM song for JR East’s “JR SKISKI” campaign featuring Suzu Hirose.

It’s the perfect track to revisit the bittersweet taste of an unattainable love or to listen to on a winter night while thinking of someone special.

Christmas songback number7rank/position

back number – “Christmas Song” Music Video

A medium-tempo number from back number that captures the wintry atmosphere and the bittersweetness of unrequited love.

Set against the festive glow of Christmas, budding feelings and the inner conflict of longing for someone are expressed through a beautiful melody.

Released in November 2015, the song was featured as the theme for Fuji TV’s Monday 9 p.m.

drama “5→9: From Five to Nine,” and it captured the hearts of many.

Beloved as a winter staple, this piece is a song that stands by those struggling with love.