Torch (song)

This article is about the Soft Cell song. For the genre, see Torch song. For other songs, see Torch (disambiguation)§Songs.

"Torch"
Single by Soft Cell
B-side	"Insecure Me"
Released	7 May 1982 (1982-05-07)
Genre	Synth-pop new wave
Length	4:08
Label	Some Bizzare
Songwriters	Marc Almond, David Ball
Producer	Mike Thorne
Soft Cell singles chronology
"Say Hello, Wave Goodbye" (1982) "Torch" (1982) "What!" (1982)

"Torch" is a song by English synth-pop duo Soft Cell. It was released as a single in 1982, and in mid-June peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, ^[1] ranking 45 for the year. It also reached number 31 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, ^[2] number 12 in the Netherlands ^[3] and number 6 in the Flemish Ultratop 50. ^[4]

Singer Marc Almond duets towards the end of the song with Cindy Ecstasy, an American clubgoer the band had met at the after-hours bar Club Berlin in New York the year previously. ^[5] It also features a prominent trumpet solo by John Gatchell. ^[6]

The single was originally intended to be double A-sided, coupled with the eventual B-side song "Insecure Me"; as such, both songs were included in the band's 2018 singles compilation Keychains & Snowstorms: The Singles. ^[7]

"Torch" ranked 49 in the New Musical Express critics' list of the year's 50 best singles. ^[8]

Charts

Chart (1982)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [9]	68
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [10]	6
Ireland (IRMA) [11]	7
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [12]	12
UK Singles (OCC) [13]	2
West Germany (GfK) [14]	75

References

1. "Soft Cell | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
2. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/p14314/charts-awards/billboard-singles
3. "Discografie Soft Cell - dutchcharts.nl". dutchcharts.nl.
4. "Soft Cell - Torch". ultratop.be.
5. Almond, Marc (1 October 2000). Tainted Life: The Autobiography. New York City: Pan Macmillan. ISBN   978-0330372015.
6. electricityclub (2018-09-01). "Keychains & Snowstorms: The SOFT CELL Story". ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK. Retrieved 2025-10-25.
7. "Soft Cell - The Singles: Keychains & Snowstorms - (CD Album)". www.lexermusic.com.
8. "Rocklist.net...NME End Of Year Lists 1982..." www.rocklistmusic.co.uk. Archived from the original on June 29, 2006.
9. "Australian Top 100 Singles - 06 September 1982". RateYourMusic.
10. "Soft Cell – Torch" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
11. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Torch". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
12. "Soft Cell – Torch" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
13. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
14. "Offiziellecharts.de – Soft Cell – Torch" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.