| Biography | Bill Forbes was born in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), educated at St. Peters College in the suburb of Bambalapitiya. At 17, he went to Britain to pursue his dreams of becoming a famous singer.
He auditioned for the new and popular Oh Boy! show and was accepted, making his debut singing an upbeat spiritual song Gods Little Acre, picked for him by the producer Jack Good. Shortly afterward, he was signed by Columbia. He most successful recording was a cover of Too Young which reached no. 29 in UKs NME Chart during December 1959. In Ceylon, Too Young / Its Not The End Of The World was a double-sided no. 1 hit in early 1960, beaming proudly on the overseas English Services of the venerable Radio Ceylon, celebrating her famous son. Meanwhile, Bill was inspired by the successful comical song Goodness Gracious Me sang by Peter Sellers and Sophia Loren. He decided to record his own baila styled (Ladies of) Calcutta* and Aa-Chaa England (Oh to be in England, composed by Bill Forbes) under the name of Kal Kahn in 1964. Both songs are considered classics.
Bill Forbes gave up show business in 1975 and settled in Huddersfield, UK. He is regarded as the first Sri Lankan solo artist ever to secure a recording contract and a hit recording outside his native country. |