Lovely senior life

Recommended love songs for people in their 80s: A collection of classic love songs that colored the Showa era

Editor-in-Chief, RAG MUSICKeisuke Hane
Editor-in-chief of RAG MUSIC. After working at a music studio and in wedding sound engineering, joined the RAG MUSIC editorial team in 2016. Experienced with various instruments: marching band in elementary school, clarinet in middle school wind ensemble, and drums in a band from high school onward. Drawing on personal music activities and professional experience, produces daily articles, including song introductions, features on music festivals around Japan, and live reports. Enjoys a wide range of music, from domestic and international rock to, more recently, a broad spectrum of J-pop.

For people in their 80s, there are surely many love songs from the Showa era that hold deep meaning.

Among enka and popular songs, there are pieces that express a wide range of emotions, and many listeners likely projected their own feelings onto them.

In this article, we’ll introduce timeless love-song classics that we’d love for people in their 80s to revisit now.

If you’re reading this, please consider recommending the songs we introduce to the 80-somethings in your life.

Recommended love songs for people in their 80s: A collection of classic Showa-era love songs (61–70)

Love without meetingHiroshi Uchiyamada and the Cool Five

Love without meeting

Love Without Meeting - Hiroshi Uchiyamada and Cool Five

Uchiyamada Hiroshi & Cool Five’s “Aowazu ni Aishite” is a classic that sings of bittersweet love.

Because the lovers can’t meet, their feelings only grow stronger—this song, released in 1969, topped the Oricon charts and became a huge hit.

It has been covered by many artists, including Keiko Fuji and Aki Yashiro.

Anyone who has experienced heartbreak or unrequited love will surely relate.

How about listening to it while reminiscing about youthful romance and soaking in the nostalgia?

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A Love Story in GinzaYujiro Ishihara · Junko Makimura

A Love Story in Ginza

Love Story in Ginza - Yujiro Ishihara & Junko Maki

Yujiro Ishihara and Junko Makimura’s “Ginza no Koi no Monogatari” is a classic that portrays a heartrending tale of young lovers set against the glamorous backdrop of Ginza.

Their beautiful harmonies resonate deeply, expressing profound love and the pain of parting.

Released in 1961, it was later used as the theme song for a film of the same name.

It became a massive hit, selling 3.

35 million copies, and is known as one of Ishihara’s signature songs.

It’s a piece we especially recommend to older listeners who fondly remember young love—perfect for a heartwarming moment of reminiscing about the past.

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Blue Light YokohamaAyumi Ishida

Blue Light Yokohama

Blue Light Yokohama Ishida Ayumi

Ayumi Ishida’s signature song “Blue Light Yokohama” is her 26th single, released in 1968.

It became a massive hit, selling over 1.

5 million copies in total, and earned her first appearance on NHK’s Kōhaku Uta Gassen.

Celebrated as an iconic song of Yokohama, it was ranked No.

1 in 2009 as “Yokohama City’s local song.” Evoking the adult, sophisticated mood of Yokohama’s port at night, the song’s sultry vocals perfectly match the lyrics’ portrayal of a sensual woman who clings closely to her man.

For many older listeners, it’s a track that brings back memories of their youth—nostalgic yet refreshingly new.

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In conclusion

In this article, we introduced many songs that people in their 80s likely heard often in their youth.

That said, many of them are timeless classics loved across generations.

Please consider recommending the songs featured here to the seniors in their 80s around you.