[Winter Songs] Classic Showa-era masterpieces. Popular songs you’ll want to listen to in winter.
In the Showa era, countless classic and hit songs were born and cherished by many listeners.
Winter, in particular, was a season packed with events like Christmas and New Year’s, and filled with dramatic themes such as snowy landscapes.
In this special feature, we introduce some of the finest winter songs from the Showa period.
We hope that those who experienced the era in real time will feel nostalgic, while those who did not will find it fresh and enjoyable.
Please enjoy!
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[Winter Songs] Showa-era masterpieces. Popular songs you want to listen to in winter (21–30)
snowneko
The folk group Neko’s 1972 single “Yuki” is a classic in which the band gives voice to a song written and composed by Takuro Yoshida.
The protagonist’s aching longing for someone far away overlaps with the quietly accumulating snowfall.
The delicate tone of the 12-string guitar, the hi-hat-driven rhythm, and the restrained vocals create a clear, transparent sound that evokes the sophistication of urban folk.
How about listening to it on a winter night when you miss someone you can’t meet, watching the snow dance outside your window? It’s a song that sinks into the heart, keeping you company when you want to linger over past memories in a warm room.
Sha-la-laSazan Ōrusutāzu
A moody Christmas song by Southern All Stars, also known as “Southern,” released as a double A-side with “Gomen ne Charlie.” The fact that it came out in 1980 really makes you feel how quickly time flies—and how amazing Southern are.
It’s also unusual that the duet with Haru Yoko becomes the single as is.
The mature lyrics—which can be read as “Since it’s Christmas night, I’d rather not think about anyone but you”—completely seal away Kuwata’s usual sense of humor.
I think this Christmas song is a classic in the tender, mellow side of Southern!
[Winter Songs] Showa-era masterpieces. Popular songs you want to listen to in winter (31–40)
Embraced by the wintry windKoizumi Kyoko
This is Kyoko Koizumi’s 20th single, which was also used as the theme song for a film she starred in.
The lyrics and music were written by Toshihiko Takamizawa of THE ALFEE—what a star-studded collaboration! THE ALFEE later released their own self-cover, and the song has been covered by various artists both in Japan and abroad.
It’s a track anyone who has experienced unrequited love—being unnoticed, unable to convey their feelings—can relate to.
It might even make you recall youthful romances and feel a sting in the back of your nose.
freezing rainHino Mika
Originally released in 1977 as Akio Kayama’s debut single, “Hisame” (“Freezing Rain”) was covered by Mika Hino in 1982, and this smash hit earned her first appearance on NHK’s Kōhaku Uta Gassen.
The song portrays the poignant feelings of a woman who can’t forget her former lover and tries to drown her sorrow in alcohol.
Ever since Akio Kayama’s original release, it has been a constant favorite on cable request lines and even won the Japan Record Awards’ Long Seller Prize.
Its enduring popularity is also evident from the stream of covers by renowned artists such as Kiyoshi Nakajō, Kaori Kozai, and Akina Nakamori.
A town where snow fallsTakayoshio
Yoshio Takao, a pioneer who brought chanson music to Japan, released “Yuki no Furu Machi o” in 1952.
It drew attention after being used as an insert song for the serial radio drama “Eriko to Tomo ni,” broadcast on NHK Radio in 1951.
Centered on the theme of a cold winter’s day, the song features a warm melody that gently enfolds feelings of heartache and loneliness.
It’s a piece where his tender voice resonates, keeping company with a season tinged with a certain melancholy.
Why not let the sound of the strings soothe you as you picture a nostalgic landscape?
LOVE (I want to hold you)sawada kenji
This is Kenji Sawada, also known as Julie’s, 25th single.
At the 1978 NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen, it achieved the rare feat for the time of closing the show with a pop song.
The lyrics were written by Yu Aku, renowned as one of the great lyricists of Japanese popular music.
Even among Kenji Sawada’s fans, it’s widely praised as a masterpiece, with many saying, “The lyrics are just so good.” That said, the song portrays an adulterous love.
Many listeners at the time were likely shocked by the sensual vocals that repeatedly deliver frank expressions of affection.
EVE to the TERMINALNakamori Akina
One of the tracks included in Akina Nakamori’s four-disc CD box set “AKINA,” which gathers carefully selected songs from a vast catalog.
This song, “TERMINAL made no EVE” (“Eve Until the Terminal”), originally appears on a concept album produced by Shizuka Ijūin, and once you know that, it sounds as if it captures a single scene from a larger story.
The slightly bittersweet lyrics are also noteworthy: “an unstable Christmas that hints at a breakup, yet the woman still can’t quite let go…” When sung by Nakamori, that poignancy is all the more profound.
It may be a Christmas masterpiece that isn’t widely known—at least outside her core fanbase.