Everyone does it at some point.
“I Touch Myself” by Australian rock band Divinyls was released on November 19, 1990, as the lead single from their fifth studio album, “Divinyls,” which followed on January 29, 1991.
The band formed in 1980 in Sydney when vocalist Chrissy Amphlett and guitarist Mark McEntee met and began their musical partnership.
Amphlett stated the duo met “in a church choir, and I was performing in this opera house with all these nuns and priests in the audience. I’d put out feel as I really wanted to sort of meet Mike, and I heard he was a good guitar player. So he came, of all places, to this concert this night, and I got the sack from the choir that night because the microphone wrapped around the stool. So I’m dragging this slot, this stool, around the opera house stage, and the—you know—they just said, ‘Enough, Christine.’ You know, I got thrown out of the choir.”
Over a decade later, with an album name bearing their name, the band experienced an orgasm of success. At that moment, the Divinyls erupted out of Australia and made it all the way into the mainstream vein.
To reach this point was a buildup over time. The creation of I Touch Myself began when Amphlett and McEntee collaborated with American songwriters Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg, who had co-written ‘Like a Virgin’ by Madonna and ‘True Colors’ by Cyndi Lauper.
Madonna had been pushing boundaries around sexuality throughout the ’80s and ’90s with songs like “Like a Virgin” (1984), “Material Girl” (1985) and “Justify My Love” (1990). While her approach often focused on a glamorous, controversial view of sexuality, I Touch Myself played with it another way.
I Touch Myself, released on Monday, November 19, 1990, gets to the point and portrays intimacy as a deeply personal experience. Amphlett’s delivery is unfiltered and definitely unapologetic.
“The song is about touching yourself emotionally, touching yourself physically, touching yourself spiritually—you know, touching yourself in all sorts of different ways,” said Amphlett.
Now that the lyrical meaning of the song is established, I did some mathematical analysis to learn more about the song, as many of the words are repeated.
The length of I Touch Myself is approximately 3 minutes and 44 seconds (224 seconds). This was the standard duration for radio play at the time and still remains the typical length on rock stations today. Out of these 3 minutes and 44 seconds, Amphlett sings the phrase “I Touch Myself” for approximately 52 seconds, representing 23.21% of the total runtime.
The phrase “I Touch Myself” appears 26 times in the song, and since the song contains 310 words total, that means this title phrase makes up 8.4% of the lyrics.
This is a lot of touching and holds the attention.
Lyrically: I Touch Myself
The opening lines set the tone for the entire song, which revolves around self-love and honesty, as well as a desire to feel the way the song makes you feel when you hear it, or to be the person Amphlett is singing about.
I love myself, I want you to love me
When I feel down I want you above me
I search myself, I want you to find me
I forget myself, I want you to remind meI don’t want anybody else
When I think about you I touch myself
Ah-ah-oh, I don’t want anybody else
Oh-no, oh-no, oh-no”I close my eyes and see you before me
Think I would die if you were to ignore me
A fool could see just how much I adore you
I’d get down on my knees, I’d do anything for you
These lyrics express self-love while also yearning for someone else’s affection. Amphlett sings, ‘I love myself, I want you to love me’ and ‘When I feel down, I want you above me,’ revealing vulnerability with a desire for comfort.
The repeated ‘I don’t want anybody else’ highlights exclusivity, while ‘When I think about you, I touch myself’ adds a bold level of sensuality, mainly caused by the lyrical addition of ‘Ah-ah-oh.’
You’re the one who makes me come runnin’
You’re the sun who makes me shine
When you’re around I’m always laughin’
I wanna make you mine
These lyrics depict someone consumed by passion who has the clarity of knowing what they have, what they want, and what they need—a trifecta that allows freedom to penetrate and take control. As Amphlett revealed, the song is about touching oneself emotionally, physically, and spiritually.
The lyrics “You’re the one who makes me come runnin’ / You’re the sun who makes me shine” paints a picture of how the other person brings them happiness and a side of purpose.
These are emotionally mind-blowing lyrics, brilliantly illustrated, and made a dent in the universe when released. They directly connect to the song’s title. Truthfully, who would not want these words wanted to be said to you, let alone sung to you in a seductive and honest manner. Who is opting out of hearing this?
I close my eyes and see you before me
Think I would die if you were to ignore me
A fool could see just how much I adore you
I’d get down on my knees, I’d do anything for you
The final two verses are expertly crafted and continue the desire to stay in the dream of the story. This is because the song transitions from lyrics being sung to a direct conversation spoken to you.
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah, I don’t want anybody else
When I think about you I touch myself
Ah-ah-oh, I don’t want anybody else
When I think about you I touch myself, I touch myself
and:
I touch myself, I touch myself
(When I think about you) I touch myself, I touch myself
(I don’t want anybody else) I touch myself, I touch myself
(When I think about you I touch myself) I honestly do, I touch myself
(I don’t want anybody else) I touch myself, I touch myself
(When I think about you I touch myself) I honestly do, I touch myself
I touch myself
I touch myself
So much touching, followed by the inclusion of “I honestly do” adds sincerity, making the declaration feel genuine.
I Touch Myself had a significant cultural impact and has become an anthem of self-empowerment, self-love, and confidence. The music video features Amphlett’s provocative performance, which became iconic and memorable.
The song topped charts in Australia, gained international recognition, and was nominated for an ARIA Award for Best Australian Single. In addition, I Touch Myself captured spot number 326 on Billboard’s “500 Best Pop Songs of All Time” in 2023.
The impact of I Touch Myself has extended beyond its initial release. In 2014, a year after Amphlett’s passing from breast cancer, the song was repurposed for the I Touch Myself Project, a breast cancer awareness campaign that continues her legacy.
