Popular Showa-era pop. Timeless hit songs.
Even when we say “the Showa era” in a single breath, it actually spanned more than 60 years—a long stretch during which, just off the top of my head, countless classics were born: folk songs of the ’70s, Group Sounds, the New Music of the ’80s, and of course kayōkyoku (Japanese pop) as well.
In this feature, we’ll be introducing plenty of those nostalgic Showa pop songs!
For those who experienced the Showa era in real time, we hope this brings back memories from those days.
And for those born in or after the Heisei era, we’ve tried to curate a selection broad enough to let you savor the flavor of Showa.
The genres are admittedly all over the map, but that, too, was part of the charm of the Showa music scene, I believe.
Please enjoy this collection of captivating Showa-era classics!
- A collection of nostalgic hit songs and classics from the 70s
- [Classic Showa Kayō Hits] The captivating Showa-era pop songs beloved even by younger generations
- Classic and hit Japanese pop songs from the nostalgic 80s
- [Revisited] A roundup of popular and classic Showa-era songs that are trending now [2026]
- Popular 80s hits for karaoke. Sing kayōkyoku and pop songs!
- Just listening to it purifies the heart... A healing song born in the Showa era.
- Heart-touching, tear-jerking masterpieces from the Showa era
- A collection of iconic, cool Showa-era kayōkyoku classics sung by male vocalists
- Nostalgic yet fresh!? Classic masterpieces of Japanese rock from the 1970s and 1980s
- Showa-era nostalgic songs: Popular ranking
- Memorable Youth Songs: Looking Back on New Music Masterpieces from the 1970s–80s
- Thrilling to Cool Showa-Era Tunes! Classic Songs from Female Singers and Artists of the Showa Period
- [Nostalgic Hits] Smash Hits with the Showa Generation! Classic and Popular Songs Sung by Female Vocalists
Popular Showa-era pop songs. Timeless hits (21–30)
Love Song of LumMatsutani Yūko
This is a pop tune that sings of the thrill and heartache of first love.
Released as a debut single in October 1981, it was performed by Yuko Matsutani as the opening theme for the anime Urusei Yatsura.
The heroine’s single-minded passion for love and her complex feelings over her partner’s fickleness are conveyed through a breezy melody and striking syncopation.
Although it served as an image song for the anime, it adopted an innovative approach during production by omitting character names from the lyrics, capturing the hearts of many as a universal love song.
Its catchy rhythm and sweet, wistful vocals sound as if they’ve turned a lovestruck woman’s emotions directly into music.
It’s a track that still resonates with today’s youth.
Romantic Flightkome kome CLUB
This song captures the spirit of adventure in love and dreams, carried by a light, upbeat rhythm, and expresses the feeling of taking off into the unknown with a free spirit.
Crafted by Kome Kome Club, who blend a funky sound with a positive message, it was released in April 1990 and is known as one of the group’s signature works.
It also drew attention as the tie-in song for JAL’s “Okinawa Travel” campaign and topped the Oricon weekly chart.
With its highly entertaining, stage-ready flair, the track delivers a sense of exhilaration and refreshment, as if you’re soaring through the sky.
Even today, it remains a beloved song across generations.
Popular Showa-era pop songs: Timeless hits (31–40)
Red high heelsŌta Hiromi
A poignant story woven from Takashi Matsumoto’s delicate lyrics, which portray a young girl’s heart wavering between pure dreams and urban reality, and Kyohei Tsutsumi’s melody.
Hiromi Ohta’s transparent voice beautifully expresses the loneliness and inner conflict of city life, symbolized by the motif of red shoes.
Released in June 1976, the song became a major hit, reaching No.
2 on the Oricon charts and winning the Excellence in Vocal Performance Award at that year’s Japan Record Awards.
It was also included on the album “Handmade Picture Book” and was frequently featured on music programs of the time.
For those who long for life in the big city or who live far from their hometown, this is a song that will resonate deeply.
Spring of the AccordionNakano Tadaharu
A composition by Tadaharu Nakano, who colored many classic songs of the Showa era.
The accordion’s timbre is especially striking in this piece, whose fresh atmosphere evokes the arrival of spring.
It is included on the album “Onko Chishin: Showa’s Great Singer Tadaharu Nakano,” released in July 2021, and features a superb selection that reflects the traditions of early-Showa popular song.
Marked by a melody with the flavor of overseas light music, its pastoral mood carries a poignancy as if it has drifted through many spring days.
We hope you’ll enjoy it under the gentle spring sunlight, while sensing the coming of a new season.
The last spring breakMatsutōya Yumi
A song included on Yumi Matsutoya’s seventh album, “OLIVE,” released in July 1979.
It was originally written for Hi-Fi Set, but Matsutoya also recorded her own version.
Set to Matsutoya’s characteristically gentle melody, it portrays the poignant feelings of a girl on the verge of graduation—a classic springtime song from the Showa era.
In 1991, it was adapted into a TBS drama titled “Rouge no Dengon,” and it continues to be loved across generations.
Why not listen to it slowly while feeling the spring sunshine? It will surely bring back the bittersweetness of partings—a season everyone has experienced.
Look up at the stars in the nightSakamoto Kyu
When it comes to classic Showa-era songs, nothing tops this one! Released in 1963, this heartwarming piece portrays a young person gazing up at the night sky.
Kyu Sakamoto’s gentle voice feels as if it nestles close to the listener’s heart.
It’s also famous as a musical’s theme song, offering hope and courage against the backdrop of the struggling student life many youths faced at the time.
The song won the Composition Award at the 5th Japan Record Awards, and it’s so beloved nationwide that it’s even included in school textbooks.
It’s the kind of wonderful tune that makes you want to hum along with someone special while looking up at the night sky.
In conclusion
Now then, we’ve introduced plenty of timeless Showa-era classics—what did you think? Did you find a song that brought back memories? The Showa period was an era when countless masterpieces were created by many wonderful artists and singers.
There are still so many songs we haven’t been able to cover yet, but we’ll keep expanding and refining our selections going forward, so please look forward to it!