Chrissy Amphlett, the lead singer for Australian pop group Divinyls, has died. She was 53 and had been battling breast cancer and multiple sclerosis.
Amphlett’s family—including her husband, Divinyls drummer Charley Drayton—released a statement saying the singer’s life was full of “passion and creativity,” and that “with her force of character and vocal strength, she paved the way for strong, sexy, outspoken women.”
Divinyls first rose to worldwide prominence with 1991’s suggestive single “I Touch Myself,” though the band had been around since the early '80s. The group released five albums between 1982 and 1996, parting ways shortly after its fifth album, Underworld, then briefly reuniting in 2006. The group also spent the '90s recording a series of covers for various movie soundtracks, including The Young Rascals’ “I Ain’t Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore” for 1992’s Buffy The Vampire Slayer, The Wild Ones’ “Wild Thing” for 1993’s Reckless Kelly, and Roxy Music’s “Love Is The Drug” for 1993’s Super Mario Bros.
Amphlett was also an actress, making her movie debut in the 1982 film Monkey Grip, which featured several Divinyls tracks. She once played Russell Crowe’s mother in an Australian stage production of the musical Blood Brothers and received acclaim for her portrayal of Judy Garland in The Boy From Oz.
Amphlett released her autobiography, Pleasure And Pain: My Life, in 2005.