Kevin Daniel Carmody (born 1946), better known by his stage nameKev Carmody, is anAboriginal Australian singer-songwriter and musician, aMurri man from northernQueensland. He is best known for the song "From Little Things Big Things Grow", which was recorded with co-writerPaul Kelly for their 1993 single. It wascovered by the Get Up Mob (including guest vocals by both Carmody and Kelly) in 2008 and peaked at number four on theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) singles charts.

Carmody has won many awards, and in 2009 was inducted into theARIA Hall of Fame as well as being a recipient of theQueensland Greats Awards. In 2019, Carmody was recipient of theJC Williamson Award at theHelpmann Awards. He is also known for his activism for Aboriginal rights.

Kevin Daniel Carmody^[2] was born in 1946 inCairns,Queensland. His father, John "Jack" Carmody, was a second-generation Irish descendant and his mother, Bonny, an Aboriginal woman ofLama Lama andBundjalung descent, were not allowed to get married because she was Aboriginal, and they went to Cairns because "the rules were a lot slacker there" due to the large number of migrants working in the cane fields.^[3][4][5][6] Jack (also known as "Bull"), had been a member of thered beret parachute commando unit in World War II, and had sustained a back injury during training.^[3]

Kevin's younger brother, Laurie, was born three and a half years later.^[5] His family moved to southern Queensland in early 1950, and he grew up on acattle station nearGoranba (andTara^[3]) 70 kilometres (43 mi) west ofDalby in theDarling Downs area of south eastern Queensland.^[5][6][7] They lived in a hut with a dirt floor,^[3] and his parents worked asdrovers, moving cattle along stock routes.^[5] The boys had to be hidden from authorities for fear of being taken from their parents.^[3]

At ten years of age, Carmody and his brother were taken from their parents under theassimilation policy as part of theStolen Generations and sent to a Catholic school inToowoomba,^[4][5][8] after Jack and Bonny were given the choice of sending the boys to school, or Bonny and the boys being sent permanently to live onGreat Palm Island. The school was housed in an oldarmy barracks on about 90 ha (220 acres) and run by nuns. Carmody said that the boys did not do much schoolwork, but spent their time feeding chickens, collecting eggs, "hauling in coal for the kitchen stoves and buttering bread for the nuns". They were allowed to visit their parents twice a year. He did not learn to read until he was 11 years old.^[3]

After schooling, he returned to his rural roots and worked for 17 years as a country labourer,^[6][9] including droving,shearing, bag lumping, wool pressing andwelding.^[6][10] The family all pooled their earnings into the same bank account, and lived mostly off the land.^[3]

In 1967, he married Helen, with whom he has three sons; they later divorced but remain "good mates".^[5]

In 1978, at the age of 33, Carmody enrolled in university,^[7]Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education (now part of theUniversity of Southern Queensland).

At the night time I was always just interested in music, so I started to study music [by myself] and got to a standard, when I moved to Toowoomba and got a proper music teacher. And she said to me, 'you know, you're miles ahead of the standard they'd require to get into the music course at the University of Southern Queensland'.

Due to his limited schooling, Carmody's reading and writing skills were not up to required university standard. Undeterred, he suggested to the history tutor that until his writing was suitable he would present his research in a musical format accompanied by guitar.^[8] While this was a novel approach at university, it was in line with the far older Indigenous tradition oforal history. Although Carmody had extensive historical knowledge, learnt by oral traditions, much of it could not be found in library history books and was attributed to "unpublished works".^[11] Carmody completed hisBachelor of Arts degree,^[9] then postgraduate studies and aDiploma of Education at theUniversity of Queensland, followed by commencing aPhD in History, on the Darling Downs 1830–1860.^[6]

I was supposed to be studying history and music, but I'd be in the library with books on everything, geology, theorems of thermodynamics. I wished I'd had the time to take every course.

At university, Carmody had used music as a means of implementingoral history in tutorials, which led to his later career.^{[citation needed]}

In the early 1980s, Carmody began his musical career. He signed a recording contract in 1987^[5] and his first album,Pillars of Society, was released on the Rutabagas label (a label founded by artist Frances Mahony and technologist Joe Hayes); the rights were later transferred toLarrikin Records/EMI in December 1988.^[4][6] It drew heavily uponcountry andfolk styles with tracks such as "Black Deaths in Custody" and "Thou Shalt Not Steal" describing ignorance and oppression experienced byindigenous Australians.^[4][10] In the song "Thou Shalt Not Steal", Carmody draws attention to the hypocrisy of British settlers who broughtChristianity to Indigenous Australians, including thecommandment prohibitingtheft, and yet took the land that theAboriginal people had inhabited for more than 60,000 years. He emphasises the importance of land to the indigenous people, "The land’s our heritage and spirit", and turns the Christian lesson given to indigenous people around: "We say to you yes, whiteman, thou shalt not steal".^[13] ARolling Stone (Australia)journalist, Bruce Elder, described it as "the best album ever released by an Aboriginal musician and arguably the best protest album ever made in Australia".^[6][10]Pillars of Society was nominated for a1989 ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release. In subsequent recordings Carmody adopted a broad range of musical styles, fromreggae torock and roll.

That first album was acoustic because we didn't have enough money for anything else, but as I went on, I was always exploring sound. One of the things he [Carmody's grandfather] said to us was, you have to learn to listen to the wind. What he was saying was, use your imagination, widen it out, be aware of things around you. You learn to listen in another way. That's the key to my music. Just opening up to that sensory perception of sound.

Carmody's second album,Eulogy (For a Black Person), released in November 1990, was produced by Connolly,^[14] with musical support from the rest of the Messengers and members of pioneering Aboriginal rock band Mixed Relations.^[4][10] A review of the album noted that "Using a combination of folk and country music his hard-hitting lyrics deal with such potent material as theDavid Gundy slaying,^[15]black deaths in custody,land rights and Aboriginal pride and dignity. Carmody is deeply committed, powerfully intelligent and persuasively provocative. He uses images of revolutionaries... and challenges white Australia to stare unrelentingly at the despair which underpins Aboriginal society".^[16] The first single from the album, "Blood Red Rose", was described by Carmody as "a comment on personal isolation. Late night, big city alienation",^[17] whilst the B-side, "Elly", is the moving story of a young woman attempting to escape thepoverty andracism of western Queensland, who finds herself trapped inSurfers Paradise working in thesex industry.^[17]Eulogy (For a Black Person) was nominated for a1992 ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release.

Early in 1991 Carmody co-wrote a song, "From Little Things Big Things Grow", withPaul Kelly;^[18] it was an historical account of theGurindji tribe drovers' walkout led byVincent Lingiari atWave Hill Station in the Northern Territory during the 1960s, the incident which sparked off the indigenous land rights movement.^[4] It was first recorded by Paul Kelly & the Messengers onComedy in May and included Steve Connolly asguitarist of the Messengers.^[4]

Carmody's 1992 EPStreet Beat was nominated for a1993 ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release.

Carmody's third album,Bloodlines, was released in July 1993 and included his own version of "From Little Things Big Things Grow", with Kelly guesting on vocals, which was issued as a single.Bloodlines received a1994 ARIA Award nomination for Best Indigenous Release, and the single "On the Wire" was nominated for this award in1995.

Also in 1993 Carmody was the subject of a musical documentary,Blood Brothers - From Little Things Big Things Grow, byRachel Perkins and directed byTrevor Graham, which explored Carmody's life, using music clips and historical footage.^[19]

After the release of his fourth album,Images And Illusions, in September 1995, produced bySteve Kilbey ofThe Church,^[10][20] The album was nominated for a1996 ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release. Carmody re-evaluated his life and career, reducing the demands placed on him by the mainstream recording industry.^[10] He continued performing, as a musician and public speaker, to audiences as diverse as theNational Press Club and Aboriginal Australians in prison.^[10]

2000 saw the release ofMessages acompilation of songs from Carmody's first four albums. In 2001, together with Kelly, Mairead Hannan,John Romeril, Deirdre Hannan andAlice Garner, Carmody assisted in writing the musical score for the Australian filmOne Night the Moon.^[21][22] The soundtrack won a Screen Music Award at the 2002Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA)/Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) Awards.^[23]

After a break of nearly ten years Carmody released his fifth studio album in 2004. The album,Mirrors, was completely self-financed and distributed. It was recorded at a friend's property "down the road" and was his first album recorded with computer technology.^[8][10] The songs onMirrors cover a range of contemporary issues including refugee treatment and his thoughts on United States PresidentGeorge W. Bush, accompanied by the captured real life sounds of the Australian bush.^[10]

In 2007, Kelly organised the double album,Cannot Buy My Soul - The Songs of Kev Carmody, withtribute songs by various artists on one disc and a second disc of songs by Carmody himself.^[5][24]

I first heard his music 20 years ago, and was drawn straight away to his blend of politics and prayer, poetry, anger and pride. His body of work is one of our great cultural treasures.

On 31 October, Carmody was a special guest at the TV music channel MAX's "The Max Sessions:Powderfinger, Concert for the Cure"^[25] singing alongside front manBernard Fanning to the controversial "Black Tears" and also joined in with the encore of "These Days". The concert was a fundraiser and thank you to the "unsung heroes" of breast cancer with an invitation-only audience made up of a special group of people – those who have suffered and survived breast cancer and their support networks. The concert closed Breast Cancer Awareness Month and was the brainchild of 20-year-oldNick Vindin, who had lost his mother Kate to the disease a few years earlier.^[26]

In the aftermath of theAustralian Labor Government's 2008 apology to indigenous Australians, Carmody and Kelly reprised their song "From Little Things Big Things Grow" by incorporating samples from speeches byPrime MinistersPaul Keating in 1992 andKevin Rudd in 2008.^[10][27] Released under the name The Get Up Mob, part of theGetUp! advocacy group, the song peaked at #4 on theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) singles charts.^[28] This version featured vocals by Carmody and Kelly, as well as other prominent Australian artists (includingUrthboy,Missy Higgins,Mia Dyson, Radical Son,Jane Tyrrell, Dan Sultan, Joel Wenitong andOzi Batla).^[10]

On 22 October 2008, a DVD from two Sydney performances by Carmody and various artists was released asCannot Buy My Soul: Kev Carmody.^[29]

On 27 August 2009, Carmody was inducted into theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA)Hall of Fame alongsideThe Dingoes,Little Pattie,Mental As Anything andJohn Paul Young,^[30][31][32] Carmody's first reaction was to laugh and reply "I must be getting into the Hall of Fame with the lowest record sales in history".^[33] At the ceremony, Missy Higgins inducted Carmody, who accepted the induction,

I accepted this for the Koori culture, the community and the family [...] It's a recognition of the input we've had on music. My songs came from what my grandmother, my mother, father, aunty and uncles told me. I'm just a conduit of stories.^[34]

Carmody was joined onstage by Paul Kelly,Dan Kelly, Missy Higgins andJohn Butler to perform "From Little Things Big Things Grow".^[34]As of 2007 he lived with his partner Beryl on a 27-hectare (67-acre) bush block insouth-east Queensland.^[5]

In 2015, EMI released the 4 discRecollections... Reflections... (A Journey).

In 2020,Cannot Buy My Soul: The Songs of Kev Carmody was re-released featuring updated cover versions of Carmody's songs. To promote the album,Electric Fields were joined virtually byJessica Mauboy,Missy Higgins and John Butler for a performance of "From Little Things Big Things Grow", recorded at theAdelaide Botanic Garden conservatory and broadcast for the season finale ofABC Television's 6-partpandemic series,The Sound, on 23 August 2020. The cover features onCannot Buy My Soul: The Songs of Kev Carmody, released on 21 August 2020, which includes covers of other Carmody songs by artists such asJimmy Barnes,Courtney Barnett, andKate Miller-Heidke.^[35]Carmody has reduced his musical activities due to the effects ofarthritis.^[8][10]

TheARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres ofAustralian music. They commenced in 1987. In 2009, Kev Carmody was inducted into theARIA Hall of Fame.^{[30][31][32][34]}

TheCountry Music Awards of Australia (CMAA) (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during theTamworth Country Music Festival, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. They have been held annually since 1973.^[36]

The Deadlys Awards was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community.

TheHelpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry groupLive Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001.^[37] In 2019, Carmody received theJC Williamson Award, the LPA's highest honour, for their life's work in live performance.^[38][39]

The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as theMo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Kev Carmody won one award in that time.^[40]

TheNational Indigenous Music Awards recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians from throughout Australia. They commenced in 2004.^[41][42]

TheQueensland Music Awards (previously known as Q Song Awards) are annual awards celebratingQueensland, Australia's brightest emerging artists and established legends. They commenced in 2006.^[43]

• 2001Australian Film Industry's Open Craft Award in a Non-Feature Film for an Original Score
• 2008: Honorary Doctorate -University of Southern Queensland^[9][46]
• 2009: Great Queenslander in theQueensland Greats Awards^[47][48]
• 2010: "From Little Things" added to theNational Film and Sound Archive'sSounds of Australia registry^[49]
• 2013:University of Queensland Alumni Awards: Vice Chancellor's Excellence Award for Indigenous Community Impact^[50]
• 2022: New student accommodation at the University of Queensland named Kev Carmody House^[3]

• "Jack Deelin" (1988)
• "Thou Shalt Not Steal" (February 1990)
• "Eulogy" (November 1990)
• "Cannot Buy My Soul" (December 1991)
• "Blood Red Rose" (April 1992)
• "Living South of the Freeway" (October 1992)
• "Freedom" (July 1993)
• "From Little Things Big Things Grow" (1993)
• "On the Wire" (May 1994)
• "The Young Dancer Is Dead" (1995)

• Kelly, Paul (2008).From Little Things Big Things Grow. Kev Carmody, with paintings by Peter Hudson, illustrated byKalkarindji School children from Gurindji Country.Camberwell East, Vic: One Day Hill Publishers.ISBN 978-0-9805643-1-0.

• Official website
• Kev Carmody @Allmusic
• Kev Carmody @Discogs
• "From Little Things Big Things Grow" onAustralian Screen
• Loud and Clear,State Library of Queensland

• 1946 births
• Living people
• APRA Award winners
• ARIA Award winners
• ARIA Hall of Fame inductees
• Australian male singers
• Australian guitarists
• Australian harmonica players
• Australian people of Irish descent
• Indigenous Australian musicians
• Members of the Stolen Generations
• University of Queensland alumni
• University of Southern Queensland alumni
• People from Cairns
• Queensland Greats
• Australian political music artists

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