The great Marianne Faithfull has passed away, peacefully, at the age of 78.
I’m too young to have been familiar with her in her Swinging London heyday, but I felel in love with the Blazing Away live album. And “The Ballad of Lucy Jordan” still gives me goosebumps.
For those of us who remember her, she’s best known in the USA for her version of “As Tears Go By.” In fact, hers is the first recording of that song I heard, and I’ve always liked it. She was a fine singer and interpreter of old-tymie English folk songs. A good example is her haunting version of “Scarborough Fair.”
I don’t know how to post a link to it, but I’d encourage you to look it up on YouTube.
I have to admit that my main association for Marianne Faithfull is her appearances on the 1990s UK comedy Absolutely Fabulous. (Where she demonstrated a ton of presence.)
Condolences to her family and friends.
Her Angel of the Morning has always been a favorite of mine since it first came out.
Both the track and album Broken English are bloody brilliant!
Thanks, I’ll have a listen!
I loved her voice, read her book, and saw her on SNL.
Did she do that too? I’ve never heard a version by her. I’ll have to look it up. The two I remember were by Merrilee Rush in 1968 and Juice Newton in 1981. Both were big Pop hits but there were many other versions. It was a good song that transcended time periods and fit the style of many singers.
Omg, you’re right, I mixed her up with Merilee Rush! I wonder how long I’ve had them merged in my brain!
She co-wrote the Stones’ “Sister Morphine” from “Sticky Fingers”, one of the most haunting songs ever recorded, but only got credits a few years ago (typical for Jagger/Richards, one reason Mick Taylor left the band was his complaint of not getting credits for his work). “Wild Horses” from the same album allegedly was written about her.
I was 11 when “Broken English” came out and the title song and “The Ballad Of Lucy Jordan” got radio play. Not exactly typical music for a 11 year old, but I distinctly remember these songs because I liked them so much. Still do.
I’m not all that familiar with her work, though I know who she is. She did a duet with John Prine on one of the songs on his “Lost Dogs + Mixed Blessings” album, and she sounds like she’d been smoking two packs a day for the last fifty years. I assume her voice was a lot less raspy in her prime?
Definitely, but she already had that raspy voice in 1979. Compare:
(from 1964, when she was 17)
(from 1979)
For those who are curious, the NYT had a obituary ready:
Two, even. She deserved them.
Why’d ya do it has always been a big hit on local alt dancefloors. Love all her stuff. But also her acting.
If I may be superficial for a moment, I’ve noticed when they were both young, Marianne Faithful and Helen Mirren looked similar.
Well, her trademark, deliberate or not, was pretty much always having a cig in hand. I could have sworn I saw her in an MTV or VH1 clip (like "Unplugged), and she was holding while singing, but no luck in finding it.
The same happened with Joni Mitchell; cigarettes ruined her singing. Sad.
It also just occurred to me that there may be some subtle sexism going on; many don’t seem to mind when male singers become raspy. But that should be its own thread.
RIP, Marianne.
Her song that I’ve always liked is “This Little Bird”. Was she thinking of the mythical Martlet (bird with no legs, so it’s always in the air flying) when she sang it? marianne faithfull - this little bird
I (and many of my friends) know her mostly because of her contribution to Metallica’s “The Memory Remains.”
RIP
I don’t want to recommend smoking per se or even smoking to manipulate your singing voice, but I’ve always loved Faithfull’s latter raspy voice, it had so much expressiveness and personality.