Kamahl

Kamahl was born in Kuala Lumpur to Tamil Hindu parents, and grew up as the second eldest of six children,[1] in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur. His father was head of the local Tamil music school.[1] Kamahl studied at the Victoria Institution. He arrived in Adelaide, South Australia in April 1953,[2] to receive a higher education at King's College (later renamed Pembroke School).

At his early public performances, from 1958, he shortened his name to Kamal, but successive masters of ceremonies announced him as "camel"; so he changed its spelling to Kamahl.[1] Rupert Murdoch was an early important sponsor, Murdoch tipped Kamahl £10 at an Adelaide concert in December 1958 and encouraged him to move to Sydney.[1] Without asking, Murdoch arranged for Kamahl to perform a six-week season at the Australia Hotel in Sydney.[3] After that season, he boarded with the Murdochs for two years.[1] Kamahl was a finalist in the Sydney Eisteddfod Sun Aria in 1966 singing Verdi's "Ella giammai m'amò" and Mussorgsky's "Farewell and Death of Boris".

Kamahl co-wrote and sang the theme song for a feature film, Journey Out of Darkness, made through the services of Supreme Sound Studios, Paddington, Sydney, and filmed in Orange, New South Wales.[4] He has performed at the London Palladium and Carnegie Hall, as well as pubs and clubs throughout Australia. In 1982 Queen Elizabeth II asked him to give a Royal Command performance in Brisbane for the Commonwealth Games.

His first album, A Voice to Remember, was released in Australia in October 1967. He released singles and albums in the United States, Canada, Britain, New Zealand, South America, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Germany (in German), as well as in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Scandinavia. From 1967 onwards in Australia his records, tapes and CDs were primarily on the Philips label, but he also recorded on EMI, Mercury, Festival, Dino and Reader's Digest.

In 1975 his single, "The Elephant Song",[5] (composed and produced by Hans van Hemert) hit the number one spot on the Dutch Top 40, the Nationale Hitparade (currently Single Top 100)[6] and the Belgian BRT Top 30.[7] This song was part of the soundtrack of a World Wildlife Fund TV documentary.

He has been in the Australian music industry for fifty years, and throughout that time has made some memorable TV and film appearances, as well as concerts. He was one of the first people to appear in concert at the Sydney Opera House. He was a particularly popular guest on the variety show Hey Hey It's Saturday. In 2004 he appeared at the Big Day Out rock festival, and the year before he had cameos in the Australian films Harvie Krumpet and Fat Pizza.

In 2005 he released Imagine the World in Unison. He has made appearances as a judge on The X-Factor and has a sponsorship deal with Coca-Cola. On 19 September 2007 he featured on The Chaser's War on Everything on ABC TV where he sang for a 'newly-wed couple' who turned up uninvited at his door.

In early 2008, Kamahl reunited with his old school, Pembroke (then Kings College), and went on tour in the United States with the Pembroke Symphony Orchestra.

In recent years, Kamahl has released albums through ABC Music; a Christmas album entitled Peace On Earth,[8] and a 3CD collection of favourites entitled Heart and Soul: For Lovers Of Life.[9]

In 1988 Kamahl appeared in a television commercial for Dilmah tea.[10] In 2007 he made commercials for Australian Cable Channel Fox8, advertising their WWE programming.[11]

In 2009, he accused the Australian TV show Hey Hey It's Saturday of having treated him in a way that smacked of racism, during his past guest appearances. His feelings were revealed to the Australian public shortly after Harry Connick, Jr. complained of a "black faces" skit for the show's "Red Faces" segment.[12]

Kamahl appeared in an episode of Australian TV quiz show Spicks and Specks which first went to air on 8 September 2010.[13]

In 2012, Kamahl made appearances in Prime's show The Unbelievable Truth.[14] In May 2013, an Australian drama, Offspring, aired an episode which featured Kamahl in a minor role as a medical specialist.[15]

In 1966 Kamahl married Fiji-born, Sahodra, of India descent, his family did not approve, "There was no way my parents would've given their blessing."[1] The couple have two children, Rajan (born c. 1969) and Rani (born c. 1971).[16] Rani had a singing career flourishing in the late 1990s.

• 1994 – Member of the Order of Australia[18]
• 1998 – Australian Father of the Year award
• 2004 – Australian Centenary Medal

He received another Australian honour when he was included in "Our Entertainers of the 20th Century" in May 2006. Organised by the Variety Club of Australia, the top entertainers of the century included Kylie Minogue, Dame Joan Sutherland, Jack Thompson and Graham Kennedy.[19]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kamahl.

• Kamahl's official website
• Some information about Kamahl about when he was young in Malaysia, from the Victoria Institution
• Kamahl performing "My Home" in 2015 at the age of 80 in Newcastle NSW Australia