Kandiah Kamalesvaran (; born 13 November 1934), better known by his stage name Kamahl, is a Malaysian-born Australian singer and recording artist. His highest charting Australian single, "Sounds of Goodbye" (1969), reached the top 20 on the Kent Music Report singles chart. 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. Early life Kamahl was born in Kuala Lumpur to Ceylonese Tamil and Malaysian Indian Hindu parents, the second eldest of six children, in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur. His father was head of the local Tamil music school. Kamahl studied at the Victoria Institution. He arrived in Adelaide, South Australia, in April 1953, 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. Rupert Murdoch was an early important sponsor and tipped Kamahl £10 at an Adelaide concert in December 1958 and encouraged him to move to Sydney. Without asking, Murdoch arranged for Kamahl to perform a six-week season at the Australia Hotel in Sydney. After that season, he boarded with the Murdochs for two years. 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 in Paddington, Sydney, and filmed in Orange, New South Wales. He also appeared in the film, acting as an Aboriginal Australian. 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", (composed and produced by Hans van Hemert) reached number one on the Dutch Top 40, the Nationale Hitparade (currently Single