In Memoriam: Chrissy Amphlett

If you know about popular music artists in the early 1990s, if I say, “Divinyls,” I’d bet the first thing that pops into your head is “I Touch Myself.”  That makes sense because that was the band’s only major hit in the United States.  The song peaked at number 4 on Billboard‘s Hot 100 in 1991, and is accompanied only by the song “Pleasure and Pain,” which rose to number 76 in 1986, as Hot 100 singles for the band.  Of course, you may know even more about the band if you’re from Australia, where Divinyls had a series of top 20 hits between 1981 and 1995, beginning with their debut single “Boys in Town,” which rose to number 8.  Still, even in Australia, “I Touch Myself” marked their greatest success, as the song became their only number 1 hit.

All of this bears significance today as news circulates that Divinyls’ lead singer, Chrissy Amphlett, passed away yesterday at the age of 53. It’s certainly worth listening to “I Touch Myself” today in memory of Amphlett.