For seniors: Recommended youthful songs for people in their 90s. A collection of classic Showa-era hits.
If you’re in your 90s today, you’re probably very familiar with the music that was popular in the 1930s and 1940s.
The songs we heard as children or during our school years tend to stay with us forever, don’t they?
In this article, we’ll introduce a selection of popular songs from the youthful days of those in their 90s—tracks that feel nostalgic and familiar.
If you have someone in their 90s in your life—whether a family member or someone you know through a senior care facility—please consider sharing the songs we’re about to introduce with them.
They’ll surely be delighted as the music brings back fond memories of their younger days.
- Lively songs recommended for people in their 90s—fun songs for everyone to listen to and sing together.
- Recommended youth songs for people in their 80s: A collection of nostalgic classics
- Recommended cheer songs for people in their 90s: a collection of timeless tracks that support life
- Easy-to-sing songs recommended for women in their 90s: A roundup of tracks to try at karaoke
- [For Seniors] Recommended spring songs for people in their 90s: A collection of Shōwa-era spring tunes
- Recommended love songs for people in their 90s: A collection of classic Shōwa-era romance songs
- For People in Their 90s: Dance Tracks and Exercise Songs That Make Moving Your Body Fun!
- Recommended autumn songs for people in their 90s: A collection of Showa-era autumn tunes
- Lively songs recommended for people in their 80s: A collection of nostalgic enka and kayōkyoku
- A collection of moving, tear-jerking songs recommended for women in their 90s—heartfelt tunes that resonate with the soul.
- Easy-to-sing songs recommended for men in their 90s: A roundup of tracks to sing at karaoke
- [For people in their 90s] Recommended Christmas songs: from nostalgic school songs and hymns to timeless classics
- An encouraging song we want people in their 80s to hear. A cheer song from the Showa era.
[For Seniors] Recommended Youth Songs for People in Their 90s: A Collection of Showa-Era Masterpieces (1–10)
Ginza Kan-kan GirlHideko Takamine
Ginza Kankan Musume is a 1949 hit song sung by Hideko Takamine.
Set in postwar Ginza, it portrays the lively spirit of young women who were free and open-minded.
With its light, upbeat rhythm, it captures the positive energy of the so-called “Kankan girls.” The song strikingly reflects an image of women living in a new era—independent, strong-willed, and warmed by friendship.
Record sales reached 500,000 copies and later rose to 850,000.
It’s also a beloved classic as the theme song for a film of the same name set in Ginza, and it has been widely covered.
For those in their 90s, it’s likely a song that evokes fond memories of their youth.
Why not enjoy singing it together with your family?
The two are young.Dick Mine
Futari wa Wakai, sung by Dick Mine and Reiko Hoshi, is a quintessential masterpiece of the Showa era born from lyrics by Hachiro Sato and music by Masao Koga.
Through the interplay of the young couple, it portrays pure affection and hearts full of happiness—a song that still makes your heart flutter even today.
Since its release in 1935, it has been cherished for generations and can truly be called a monument of Showa-era pop.
Why not listen to it while reminiscing about those youthful days? You’ll surely spend a lovely time filled with smiles.
Forever with youYuzo Kayama
A beautiful love song that gently seeps into our hearts, set to a light ballad that carries eternal love and hope for the future.
Featured as the theme song for the films “Young Guy with an Electric Guitar” and “Young Guy in the Alps,” this piece celebrates everlasting love against the backdrop of a sunset, tenderly expressing the sweetness and ache of young romance.
Released in 1965, it became a massive hit, selling over three million copies and receiving a Special Award at the 8th Japan Record Awards.
Yuzo Kayama’s gentle vocals and the beautiful string arrangements are soothing to the soul.
For seniors, it’s a song that will resonate with memories of their youth.
Whether you listen to it quietly on your own or sing it together with family and friends at karaoke, it’s a piece that brings a sense of calm.
[For Seniors] Recommended Youth Songs for People in Their 90s: A Collection of Showa-Era Classics (11–20)
Waltz of StarlightMasao Sen
Released in 1966 (Showa 41).
Two years later, it gradually caught fire on wired broadcasts across Japan and went on to sell a total of 2.
5 million copies.
Known as Masao Sen’s biggest hit, “Hoshikage no Waltz” (“Waltz of Starlight”) expresses, from a male perspective, the poignant feeling of having to part with a loved one—knowing it’s not what the heart truly wants, yet having no choice.
Its relaxed three-beat waltz rhythm makes it easy to sing, and combined with its popularity, it’s a song that many people can enjoy when doing karaoke in senior care facilities.
The Apple SongMichiko Namiki
Michiko Namiki’s “Ringo no Uta” (The Apple Song) is truly a masterpiece among masterpieces that lit a beacon of hope in postwar Japan.
Entrusting feelings for a beloved person to a bright red apple and conveying them through a fresh voice and cheerful melody, the song soothed and encouraged many hearts amid the bleak social climate immediately after the war.
Recorded in December 1945 and released in January 1946, it instantly became an unprecedented smash hit.
In 2007, it was selected for the “100 Selected Japanese Songs,” making it a piece that truly symbolizes its era.
It will surely bring back memories of youthful days gone by and give strength to live in the present.
At the Rainy TavernDick Mine
A work steeped in the nostalgic atmosphere of the Showa era, this classic vividly sings of a scene along a melancholy tree-lined avenue.
It conveys the pain of heartbreak and a sense of loneliness through an arrangement that incorporates elements of jazz and blues, with Dick Mine’s gentle baritone heightening the poignancy.
Released in 1954, the song was also used as the theme for the Shochiku film “Face of Hell,” and has been covered by many artists, including Yujiro Ishihara and Hibari Misora.
Its profound emotional expression and refined vocals make it a song that resonates deeply, evoking memories of the Showa period.
Tokyo RhapsodyIchiro Fujiyama
Tokyo Rhapsody, a classic Showa-era popular song sung by Ichiro Fujiyama in 1936.
The lyrics were written by Yutaka Kadota and the music composed by Masao Koga.
Set in Tokyo’s bustling districts of the time—Ginza, Kanda, Asakusa, and Shinjuku—it depicts urban daily life brimming with love and dreams.
Fujiyama’s vocals capture the romantic, vividly colored atmosphere of Showa modernity.
It was a huge hit, selling 350,000 copies, and even inspired a film of the same name.
With its upbeat foxtrot rhythm, it’s a song that lets you bask in nostalgic memories.