Three Lost Songs by Rock Legend Chrissy Amphlett Found After 25 Years

Three songs recorded more than 25 years ago by Australian rock legend Chrissy Amphlett have been rediscovered in an unexpected place: a cupboard inside singer-songwriter Tim Finn’s garage.

Amphlett, the lead singer of the Australian band Divinyls, died in 2013. She was known for her powerful voice and unforgettable stage presence, becoming one of the most recognisable female figures in Australian rock music.

But the newly discovered recordings reveal a quieter side of her musical career.

In 1998, Amphlett met New Zealand-born musician Tim Finn after he saw her performing as Judy Garland in the musical The Boy from Oz. The two quickly developed a creative connection and began working on new material together.

Over the course of just a few days, they wrote three songs and recorded them in a studio. Amphlett’s husband and drummer Charley Drayton also played on the recordings.

Finn then took the original two-inch master tape home, intending to continue working on the songs. But the project was never completed.

For more than two decades, the recordings appeared to have disappeared.

Everything changed in 2023, when Finn began searching through his garage. After moving house several times since the original recording session, he discovered a tape marked with the date and the names of Amphlett and Finn.

Inside were the three recordings from their 1998 collaboration.

Finn described the discovery as finding a treasure. Hearing Amphlett’s voice again was particularly emotional because she had died years earlier.

The recordings capture Amphlett away from the larger-than-life image that had made her famous. Her voice is heard in a more intimate setting, allowing listeners to hear another dimension of the singer’s talent.

The discovery also brought back memories for Drayton, who had spent years wondering what had happened to the songs.

After Amphlett’s death, Drayton contacted Finn to ask whether the master tape still existed. Finn initially did not know where it was and believed it might have been lost permanently.

Finding it more than 20 years later meant the music could finally be restored.

The songs have since been mixed and remastered for release on an EP titled Some Times.

For Drayton, hearing Amphlett’s voice again has been an emotional experience. He said the recordings offered another way for people to remember a woman whose public image often overshadowed the quieter person her family and friends knew.

Amphlett grew up in Geelong, Victoria, in a musical family. She became the frontwoman of Divinyls and helped the band achieve international success with songs including Boys in Town, Pleasure and Pain and I Touch Myself.

Her career also included acting and stage performances, including her role as Judy Garland in The Boy from Oz.

The rediscovered recordings therefore represent more than three previously unheard songs. They document a brief creative partnership between two established Australian musicians at a moment when Amphlett was exploring a different musical direction.

After being forgotten in a garage cupboard for years, the recordings are now giving audiences an opportunity to hear Amphlett’s voice again.

A forgotten tape, discovered during an ordinary search through a garage, has turned into a new chapter in the musical legacy of one of Australia’s most distinctive rock performers.

Sources: ABC News Australia, Australian Story.