[Sunset Songs] Songs about sunsets and the evening glow you’ll want to listen to at dusk
I’ve put together songs you’ll want to listen to while watching the sunset.
When you gaze at a sky dyed by the setting sun, you feel the day coming to a close, and at the same time a hard-to-describe sense of poignancy and loneliness spreads through your chest.
In fact, there are many timeless, heart-wrenching masterpieces themed around sunsets, regardless of era.
Whether rock, pop, or folk, each track is filled with melancholy, nostalgia, and bittersweet emotion.
Give them a listen when you want to calm your mind or when you’re in the mood for a tender, sorrowful ballad.
- [Sunset Songs] A selection of timeless classics and the latest tracks perfect for listening at dusk
- Japanese songs perfect for the evening. Recommended evening tracks for your commute or as background music.
- [Autumn Songs] Songs of autumn. Classic tracks and popular favorites you’ll want to listen to in the fall.
- [Touching the Heart] Timeless Ballad Masterpieces. A Collection of Unfading Classics and the Latest Songs [2026]
- Classic songs that sing of the sky. Recommended popular tracks that will make you long for the sky.
- [Unrequited Love] Heart-wrenching Love Songs | A Roundup of Tear-Inducing Crush and Breakup Tracks
- [Masterpieces That Sing of Dawn] A curated selection of moving hit songs and hidden gems
- Songs to Listen to in September: Popular J-POP Tracks That Capture the End of Summer and Early Autumn
- Songs you want to listen to at the end of summer: Late-summer classics to look back on the season
- Ballad songs perfect for autumn. Timeless mellow hits for the fall season.
- [Relaxed & Gentle] A calm track with an easy, unhurried tempo
- [Autumn Love Songs] A selection of love songs that portray a bittersweet longing
- [2026] Songs to listen to in November: masterpieces of late autumn, autumn songs.
[Sunset Songs] Songs about sunsets you’ll want to listen to at dusk (31–40)
glowing madder-redAimer
Akane Sasu is a sunset song with a memorable music video featuring a man and woman walking sadly through the dusk.
It was also used as the ending theme for the anime Natsume’s Book of Friends Go, so anime fans might recognize it.
The lyrics convey a quietly melancholic feeling, giving the impression of having found something precious only to have to part with it.
In the MV, the man can see the woman, but the woman can’t see the man—perhaps they no longer exist in the same world.
It’s a song that seeps gently into your heart with a bittersweet ache when you listen to it while watching the evening sky.
twilightBEGIN
A track released for streaming on New Year’s Day 2021.
Its spacious, expansive feel conjures up majestic nature, and BEGIN’s signature gentle atmosphere wraps you in a sense of calm.
It stirs up nostalgia and a longing for home, as if those feelings rise with the sunset.
Higa’s vocals, brimming with warmth and generosity, are wonderful and moving, soothing the rough edges of daily life.
It makes you feel as though you’ve returned to your hometown.
Reflected at duskAkiyama Kiiro
This is a song released by Kiro Akiyama in 2019.
It’s about a man dealing with heartbreak, filled with poignant words about how he can’t forget.
In the lyrics, twilight is portrayed as the time of parting and the final gentle moment.
Dusk often brings a subtle sense of loneliness, and if you’ve said goodbye to someone important as the sun was setting, you might be reminded of it every time you see the evening sky.
Despite the sorrowful content of the lyrics, the melody is brisk and uplifting, making it a great fit for cycling or driving.
The season the sun gave usaoi sankakujougi
It’s a song released by Aoi Sankakujōgi in 1972, and it was chosen as the theme song for the youth drama “Fly Out! Youth,” which aired on the Nippon Television network.
With this song, they won the New Artist Award at the 14th Japan Record Awards in 1972, and also appeared on NHK’s 23rd Kōhaku Uta Gassen, marking their first Kōhaku performance.
Among Shōwa-era kayōkyoku, it is an easy-to-understand youth anthem, and staging that evokes a sunset backdrop was often used.
Beautiful SunsetGENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE
A perfect song for those looking for a sunset track to run by the seaside: “Beautiful Sunset.” It was released in 2021 by the dance and vocal group GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE.
The song paints the ultimate scene of watching a beautiful seaside sunset with the one you love.
While songs about the summer sea often have a lively image, this one features a gentle, laid-back sound.
Be sure to give it a listen on your way home from a date.
It’s sure to strengthen the bond between you two.
[Sunset Songs] Songs about sunsets and the evening sun to listen to at dusk (41–50)
It might be a train.tama
Even the single word “sunset” carries many different meanings.
Among them is the eerie sort of sunset—sometimes called the witching hour—when everything is stained crimson, and that’s the image this song brings to mind.
Its lyrics and worldview are rich with nuance that can be read in multiple ways, creating an addictive quality you can completely sink into.
Red sky at duskFurēberu Shōnen Gasshōdan
When it comes to songs about sunsets, many people probably think of this one first.
It’s a representative Japanese children’s song that many of us heard in school.
It might even be the very first “sunset song” you ever recognized in your life.
The lyrics were written in 1919 by Uko Nakamura, a poet who was working as an elementary school teacher, and the music was later composed by Shin Kusakawa.
The word “koyake” is said to have two possible interpretations: one is that it was chosen for its pleasing sound, and the other is that it reflects different scenes of a changing sunset.
The song depicts feelings experienced when returning home and beautiful scenery, with lyrics that gently accompany you as you make your way back to your hometown.