Kamahl
Kandiah Kamalesvaran AM (Tamil: கந்தையா கமலேஸ்வரன்; born 13 November 1934), better known by his stage name Kamahl, is a Malaysian-born Australian singer and recording artist. His highest charting local single, "Sounds of Goodbye" (1969), reached the top 20 on the Kent Music Report singles chart. While another single, "The Elephant Song" (1975), peaked at number one in both the Netherlands and Belgium. Generally his repertoire comprises pop and adult contemporary music.
Kamahl | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kandiah Kamalesvaran |
| Born | 13 November 1934 Kuala Lumpur, Federated Malay States |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1958–present |
| Labels | Philips, EMI, Mercury Records, Festival Records, Dino Records, Reader's Digest, ABC Music |
Early life
Kamahl was born in Kuala Lumpur to Malaysian 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).
Music career
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.
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 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 compilation Christmas album entitled Peace On Earth,[8] and a 3CD collection of favourites entitled Heart and Soul: For Lovers Of Life.[9]
Television appearances
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]
Personal life
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.
Discography
In 1985, The Chicago Tribune reported Kamahl as having sold "more than 20 million records worldwide" and "76 gold and 14 platinum records".[17] In 2007 Scoop New Zealand reported Kamahl as achieving "over 80 gold and platinum records".[18] In 2018, Port News reported Kamahl as having recorded more than 30 albums and "more than 100 gold and platinum records".[19]
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [20] |
NED [21] |
NZ [22] |
SWE [23] | ||
| A Voice to Remember |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Dreams of Love |
|
7 | - | - | - |
| Sounds of Kamahl |
|
13 | - | - | - |
| Peace on Earth |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Kamahl |
|
40 | - | 1[upper-alpha 1] | - |
| Friend |
|
- | - | - | - |
| I Think of You |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Encore |
|
35 | - | - | - |
| Let It Be Me |
|
69 | - | - | - |
| The Elephant Song |
|
- | 1 | - | 3 |
| If I Give My Heart to You |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Christmas with Kamahl |
|
- | 6 | - | - |
| Save the Oceans |
|
- | 2 | - | - |
| Lovin' Kind |
|
61 | - | - | - |
| Love Is a Beautiful Song |
|
65 | - | - | - |
| Portrait of My Love |
|
80 | - | - | - |
| Smile |
|
- | - | 3 | - |
| She Believes in Me |
|
99 | - | - | - |
| Treat Her Like a Lady |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Somebody Loves You |
|
- | - | 4 | - |
| This Love We Share |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Love Untied |
|
- | - | - | - |
| You Are Everything |
|
- | - | - | - |
| Precious Words and Soothing Songs |
|
28 | - | - | - |
| Anything for Love |
|
30 | - | - | - |
| How Great Thou Art |
|
- | - | - | - |
Live albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [20] |
NZ [22] |
SWE [23] | ||
| Kamahl in London |
|
- | - | - |
| Kamahl at the Opera House |
|
16 | - | 38 |
| Live at Carnegie Hall |
|
19 | 16 | - |
| Kamahl on Tour |
|
- | 17 | - |
Charting compilation albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [20] |
NED [21] |
NZ [22] | ||
| Chanson D'Amour |
|
N/A | 9 | N/A |
| You Bring Out the Best |
|
79 | - | - |
| 20 Greatest Hits |
|
N/A | N/A | 17 |
| Always on My Mind |
|
48 | - | - |
| This Love We Share |
|
17 | - | - |
| Miracles and Old Toy Trains |
|
70 | - | - |
| 25th Anniversary Album |
|
9 | - | - |
| The Elephant Song - Zijn 18 mooiste songs |
|
N/A | 45 | N/A |
| The Ultimate Collection |
|
- | - | 34 |
Charting singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [20] |
BEL [24] |
NED [21] |
NZ [22] | ||
| 1969 | "Sounds of Goodbye" | 19 | - | - | - |
| "You've Got to Learn" | 39 | - | - | - | |
| 1970 | "All I Have to Offer You (Is Me)" | 49 | - | - | - |
| 1971 | "100 Children"/"Danny Boy" | 34 | - | - | - |
| 1972 | "Love Is a Mountain" | 86 | - | - | - |
| 1973 | "Shame" | 93 | - | - | - |
| 1974 | "Our Love Song" | 56 | - | - | - |
| 1975 | "The Elephant Song" | 55 | 1 | 1 | 38 |
| "Chanson d'Amour" | - | 26 | 20 | - | |
| "White Christmas" | - | - | 10 | - | |
| 1976 | "Save the Oceans of the World" | - | - | 14 | - |
| 1978 | "What Would I Do Without My Music" | - | - | - | 32 |
| 1980 | "Save the Whale" | - | - | 24 | - |
| 1981 | "Before You There Was Nothing" | 96 | - | - | - |
| "Hey There Lord" | 100 | - | - | - | |
Notes
- Kamahl peaked at number 1 in NZ in 1978
Awards and recognition
- 1994 – Member of the Order of Australia[25]
- 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.[26]
References
- Thompson, Peter (15 August 2005). "Kamahl". Talking Heads. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Archived from the original on 22 May 2006. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
- "Item details for: D596, 1953/5561". National Archive of Australia. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
- Shane Maloney; Chris Grosz (November 2010). "Rupert Murdoch & Kamahl". The Monthly. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
- Richard Kuipers. "Curator's notes Journey Out of Darkness (1967)". Australian Screen Online. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
- Lyrics and audio for The Elephant Song
- "Kamahl – The Elephant Song". Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
- "The Elephant Song – Kamahl". Radio 2 (in Dutch). Brussels: VRT. 2008. Archived from the original on 9 April 2012.
- "Kamahl – Peace On Earth". ABC Music. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- "Kamahl – Heart and Soul". ABC Shop. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- "Brand Kamahl sings on". The Australian Financial Review. 4 July 2013. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- FOX8 – Promo – WWE Vs Kamahl 'Spit' on YouTube
- McCabe, Kathy; Byrnes, Holly (9 October 2009). "Livid Kamahl has had enough of Hey, Hey It's Saturday". The Daily Telegraph. Sydney.
- "Spicks and Specks – 8:30pm Wednesday, September 08 2010". ABC Television. Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
- "The Unbelievable Truth". Yahoo7 Television. yahoo 7 Australia.
- David Knox (28 May 2013). "Look who's acting in Offspring this week…". TV Tonight.
- Schluter, Kevin (16 December 1981). "You Wanted to Know with Kevin Schluter". The Australian Women's Weekly. 49 (28). p. 143. Retrieved 11 January 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
- "KAMAHL AIMS TO CHARM AUDIENCES". Chicago Tribune. 21 February 1985. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- "Kamahl To Perform Concerts Across NZ". Scoop New Zealand. December 2007. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- "Kamahl peforms [sic] at Port Macquarie's Glasshouse for one night only". Port News. 19 January 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 163. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
- "Kamahl Dutch Charts". dutchcharts. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- "Kamahl NZ chart". charts.nz. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- "Kamahl Swedish chart". swedishcharts. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- "Ultratop Kamahl at Belgien Charts". ultratop. 14 September 2020.
- "It's an Honour – Honours – Search Australian Honours". www.itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
- Geocaching. "Variety Entertainers of the Century". geocaching.com. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
External links
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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
Authority control  |
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