[4] Despite not obtaining sustained chart success, he gained a large international following through TV appearances and live performances, with fan clubs in at least 12 countries (including Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United States).

In the United States, where the song was released four years later, it became his only entry in the Billboard Hot 100, and reached number one on the Adult Contemporary chart.

[10] He was quoted as saying that all he wanted as a child were country and western gramophone records by artists such as The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers, to which he used to sing along.

[13] After demobilization in 1956, he enrolled at the University of Cape Town in South Africa to pursue a career in medicine, performing at the Equator Club in Nairobi during breaks.

[15] Whittaker's US label, RCA Victor, released the uptempo "New World in the Morning" in 1970, where it became a Top 20 hit in Billboard magazine's Easy Listening chart.

[citation needed] In the early 1970s, Whittaker took interest in the Nordic countries when he recorded the single "Where the Angels Tread" (Änglamarken) to the music of Evert Taube in 1972.

[15] In 1979, country singer Webb Pierce covered "The Last Farewell" with another title and lyrics as white gospel song "I Love Him Dearly".

Released in December 1983, his version of Leon Payne's "I Love You Because" spent four weeks in the US Hot Country charts, peaking at number 91.

[20] In 1986, Whittaker returned to the UK Top 10 with a hit duet of The Skye Boat Song sung alongside popular entertainer Des O'Connor.

His biggest hits in Germany included "Du warst mein schönster Traum" (a rerecording of "The Last Farewell") and "Abschied ist ein scharfes Schwert" ("parting is a sharp sword").

He appeared regularly on the TV series ZDF-Hitparade, received numerous awards, and was West Germany's bestselling artist of 1977, when he completed a 41-concert tour of the country.

[23] They had two sons and three daughters: Emily, Lauren, Jessica (who became a presenter on VH1), Guy (bassist with the singer Fink), and Alexander,[24] 12 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

[25] Still living in Nairobi, they were the victims of a robbery on 1 April 1989 in which a small gang of men killed Whittaker’s father and left his mother, who freed herself some hours later, tied up in the bathroom.

[13] Whittaker was involved in efforts to save the black rhino, donating recording royalties and money from concert program sales to create sanctuaries for the species in Kenya.

[2][7] His longtime publicist Howard Elson said the cause was “complications following a long illness.”[16] In 1976, Whittaker undertook his first tour of the United States.