I agree about the old classics—but what is old enough?

I recommend you ask what is the average age of the residents (ask the nurses, not the residents themselves; they may not know!) and then look up the songs that were hits when those people were age 15-25. That may be more recent than you think!

For example, for a 90-year-old, that would be the period 1937-1947.

That would NOT include, say, LET ME CALL YOU SWEETHEART, which goes back to 1910! Today's nursing home residents would probably find that too old-fashioned.

It won't be long before musicians who play in nursing homes will need to learn some Beatles songs.