A classic song about Oita. The enduring spirit of our hometown [2025]

Port Town Love SongNatsumi Kawano

Port Town Love Song

This song by Natsumi Kawano, who hails from Tsukumi City in Oita Prefecture, portrays the bittersweet heart of a woman against the backdrop of her hometown port—her original landscape.

Place names such as the Bungo Channel appear in the lyrics, painting vivid scenes in the listener’s mind.

Kawano’s clear, resonant voice is like the sea breeze blowing through the port of Tsukumi.

As you listen, you may feel her warm love for her hometown conveyed deeply through the song.

If you’re from the same area as Kawano, be sure to give it a listen.

Yufuin SentimentYuji Mitsuki

Yuji Mitsuki, “Yufuin Ujo (Yufuin Sentiment)”

Yuuji Mitsuki, a native of Oita City, poured his deep love for his hometown into this song, “Yufuin Ujō.” With the dramatic vocals honed at the Shiki Theatre Company, he beautifully captures the gentle, refined atmosphere of this famed hot spring town.

If you listen closely to the lyrics, scenes unique to Yufuin vividly arise in your mind—Lake Kinrin veiled in morning mist, the gentle sway of the horse-drawn carriages.

Though the song tells of the sorrow of parting, a warm sense of home quietly spreads beneath it all.

This piece is like a small story that bottles up the very air of Yufuin.

Play it as a companion on your journey, and the town’s scenery may feel all the more evocative.

Bungo Minato-machiNatsumi Kawano

Natsumi Kawano “Bungo Port Town”

This song portrays the poignant feelings of a woman anxiously waiting at her hometown port for someone who has set off across distant seas.

The “Bungo” in the title is the old provincial name for what is now Oita Prefecture, and the singer, Natsumi Kawano, hails from Tsukumi City, which is known as a port town.

Perhaps her deep affection for her own hometown is woven into her voice.

The foreign imagery in the lyrics—such as the Southern Cross—only serves to highlight the loneliness of the port where the heroine waits, as well as her unwavering love.

Many listeners may find themselves empathizing with the longing for someone dear who is far away.

It’s an emotionally rich piece that vividly evokes the scenery of Oita’s ports.

Yunohira UjōNatsumi Mizuki

Yunohira Ujō

Set in Yufuin’s famed Yufuta Onsen in Oita Prefecture, this song by Natsumi Mizuki celebrates cherished moments with a loved one.

You can almost picture the nostalgic stone-paved hot spring town.

As lanterns light up the evening, the warmth of two people walking close together gently comes through in Mizuki’s emotionally rich vocals.

The scene is so beautifully drawn it feels like gazing at a landscape painting.

Many listeners will likely find themselves empathizing with the heartwarming romance while soaking in the serene ambience of Yufuta Onsen.

It’s a classic that stirs a yearning to travel to Oita.

A Man’s HarborIchiro Toba

A Man’s Harbor — Ichiro Toba

This is the 14th single released in 1986 by Ichirō Toba, an enka singer known for performing many songs about fishermen.

It is about Tsurumisaki, the easternmost point of Kyushu, located in Saiki City.

With this song, Ichirō Toba appeared in the 39th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen.

Kunisaki PeninsulaSaburō Kitajima

Kunisaki Peninsula

This is a song set in Oita Prefecture, powerfully performed by Saburo Kitajima, a giant of the enka world.

Against the backdrop of the Kunisaki Peninsula—where the syncretic culture of Shinto and Buddhism still thrives—it passionately sings of the burning homesickness felt by those far from their hometown, and of tender yearning for a beloved mother.

The fact that Kitajima himself wrote both the lyrics and the music under his own pen name conveys his exceptional affection for the piece.

If you lend an ear to his majestic voice, you may feel the wind of Kunisaki and the scent of the sea reaching your heart.

It’s a song that will likely strike a chord with anyone who has a place to call home.

Oita RiverChiharu Higashi

Oita River by Chiharu Azuma (Vocal)

Set against the majestic Oita River in Oita Prefecture, this is a song by Chiharu Azuma that richly conveys shifting human emotions and feelings for one’s hometown.

The lyrics are based on the work that won the top prize in a lyric contest held by the Oita Godo Shimbun, making it truly a piece woven from the hearts of local people.

Many listeners may find themselves empathizing with the way life is likened to the grand flow of the river, looking back with nostalgia while still facing forward.

The gently nostalgic melody of this kayokyoku evokes serene scenes of Oita in the mind.

For those living away from their hometown, this song may feel as if it speaks on their behalf.