1980s: Formation, Desperate, What a Life!, and Temperamental Amphlett was the first cousin of 1960s Australian pop icon
Patricia "Little Pattie" Amphlett. In her autobiography
Pleasure and Pain (2005), Amphlett described breaking into the music scene from the age of fourteen, being arrested for
busking when seventeen and travelling in Spain, and how her performances drew upon childhood pain. Amphlett and guitarist Mark McEntee were introduced by Jeremy Paul (ex-
Air Supply) in the car park of a small music venue in
Collaroy, Sydney, after Amphlett and Paul had finished a gig with their then band, Batonrouge. Amphlett and McEntee met again at the
Sydney Opera House where Amphlett and Paul were singing in a choral concert in 1980. They recruited keyboardist Bjarne Ohlin later in 1980 and drummer Richard Harvey in 1981, respectively, and for almost two years they performed in pubs and clubs in Sydney's
Kings Cross. During this time, Paul negotiated publishing and recording agreements that led to the band signing with WEA. Australian film director Ken Cameron saw Divinyls performing in a club. This led to them providing the soundtrack for his 1982 film
Monkey Grip and also gave Amphlett, Paul and McEntee supporting roles in the movie. The group released two singles from the soundtrack,
Music from Monkey Grip EP, "
Boys in Town", which reached No. 8 on the national singles chart, and "Only Lonely". By early 1988, Divinyls consisted of Amphlett and McEntee with augmentation by additional musicians when recording or touring.
1990s: diVINYLS & Underworld In 1991, Divinyls released
diVINYLS on
Virgin Records and the single "
I Touch Myself" which became their only Australian No.1 single. The song reached No. 4 in the United States and No. 10 in the United Kingdom. The majority of Divinyls' hits were co-written by Amphlett and McEntee,
diVINYLS reached No. 5 on the Australian album charts The drummer for the
diVINYLS sessions was
Charley Drayton, who became romantically involved with Amphlett: they married in July 1999, and from 2000, lived together in New York. A disagreement with Virgin Records stifled future development outside Australia where they released popular albums and achieved two more top twenty singles with "
I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" No. 19 in 1992 and "
I'm Jealous" No. 14 in 1995. The song "I Touch Myself" caused such a controversy it had trouble getting airplay in many US-area markets; so much to the point that while performing their song live in Texas at Austin Aqua Fest 1991 the plug was pulled on the band mid-set by organisers. It wasn't until 1996 that their fifth studio album,
Underworld, was released in Australia by
BMG. The production was a success and Amphlett's interpretation of Garland, during her final troubled years, brought her critical acclaim: she was nominated for the
Helpmann Award for 'Best Female Actor in a Musical'. In May 2001, the
Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), as part of its 75th-anniversary celebrations, named "
Science Fiction" as one of the
Top 30 Australian songs of all time. In November 2005 Amphlett published her autobiography
Pleasure and Pain: My Life co-written with Larry Writer;
2006–2012: Hall of Fame and reformation On 16 August 2006, Divinyls were inducted into the
ARIA Hall of Fame and made their first performance for 10 years at the award ceremony. They performed during the
Australian Idol grand final at the Sydney Opera House, on 25 November 2007, although their performance of "Boys in Town" (also performed by
Idol winner
Natalie Gauci) had to be repeated after
Network Ten's transmission feed was interrupted. A national tour of Australia followed in December 2007 with a touring band featuring Drayton on drums, Jerome Smith on bass, Charlie Owen on guitar and newest member
Clayton Doley on keyboards. Amphlett revealed on 7 December 2007 that she had
multiple sclerosis in an interview with
Richard Wilkins on
Network Nine's
A Current Affair—nevertheless, she was looking forward to touring with Divinyls. The next day, Divinyls headlined the
Homebake music festival where Amphlett displayed an emotional fragility when attempting to get the crowd to sing along with her. In August 2009, Amphlett announced that Divinyls were finished and she had a new band in New York.
2013–present: Death of Amphlett and aborted 2018 reformation Aged 53 years, Amphlett died on 21 April 2013 at her home in New York City after a protracted battle with breast cancer since 2010. Amphlett stated that she had been unable to receive radiotherapy or chemotherapy as treatment for the cancer due to her multiple sclerosis. Amphlett's cousin
Patricia Thompson announced the news in an official public statement: "Our beloved Chrissy peacefully made her transition this morning. Christine Joy Amphlett succumbed to the effects of breast cancer and multiple sclerosis, diseases she vigorously fought with exceptional bravery and dignity." In 2014, some of Australia's leading female artists came together to cover "I Touch Myself" to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer. In 2017, the band performed a one-off show in Perth with
The Preatures' Isabella Manfredi and Jack Moffit joining as guests on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, respectively. McEntee, Grossman and Harvey completed the line-up. In December 2018, McEntee announced he would be reforming the group with new singer Lauren Ruth Ward, ex-Divinyls guitarist Frank Infante and a new rhythm section for an Australian tour, to begin in 2019. However, this announcement was criticised by Drayton and several fans as an "ultimate disrespect", with Drayton stating that anyone other than Amphlett who fronted the Divinyls should "seek some trustworthy advice". On 6 February 2019, the Australian tour was cancelled. In early January 2021, former band drummer Warren McLean died. Original drummer Richard Harvey died on 19 July 2022, his passing announced on social media by his bandmate from
The Party Boys Paul Christie. ==Band members==