We all knew that she was ailing - Covid almost killed her a few years ago and ever since she was basically retired - still, the news about her death came as a disappointment. I secretly hoped she would live to be a hundred and would forever bask in a glow of adoration from all the new generations of listeners who would find her cool, brave and inspiring. After all, how many 1960s pop stars can you name who had completely re-invented themselves and actually became even better, more interesting artists in their mature years? So when we talk about Marianne Faithfull, we are actually talking about two completely different artists: there is a young, breathtakingly beautiful girl in the 1960s and later, angry, middle aged and shock provoking rocker who gleefully enjoyed in her notoriety. Even though many (including Faithfull herself) dismissed her beginnings, I enjoy both of her phases and understand that the later chapter would not be possible without those early 1960s pop that would eventually serve as a stark contrast of things to come.
What always bothered me - ever since I became aware of her - was the media's endless fascination with her fall from grace. Everywhere you look, her name was always connected with the excess of Swinging 1960s - drugs, police, arrests, scandals - it was almost like journalists could not stop talking about the connection with Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones. To a certain extent, this happens to many female artists, no matter how successful or important they might be: its always Sonny & Cher, Ike & Tina, Marianne & Mick, John & Yoko, Dylan and Baez. Almost like relationship to a famous men is what matters the most. In the decades since she left Mick Jagger behind and moved on to a surprisingly rich solo career, every single article would always go in the length about her 1960s days - which is actually illogical since her music really became better as she moved on to the middle age. I read how Faithfull herself was annoyed with this - every new album or a tour was always mentioned passingly but the biggest juice was her scandalous past. Even now in all these obituaries, its again the police, arrests and drugs and not her music that matters. No doubt, once the biopic is made, it will focus on that and not on her later years that really matter.
Well, I see it differently, partly because I was not there in the swinging 1960s and I could only admire her glow from the geographical distance, that at the same time protected me from UK tabloid culture, so I always connected with Faithfull trough what matters - her music. Our first encounter was probably accidental - my mother, who knew that I always loved and doted on my vinyl collection, bought me 1981. LP "Dangerous Acquaintances" simply because she loved the cover photo. As a teenager, I knew nothing about the singer, except that her voice was obviously very different from everybody else - it was not a pretty voice but it had an interesting character and eventually I grew to love it. Back in the day, I played this one album over and over again until I memorised every word and every note. It was much later that I learned about her past and she stayed with me ever since - the very first CD I have ever bought was her 1987 compilation "The Very Best of Marianne Faithfull" (the first time I actually heard her 1960s music) and I even managed to see her live, performing Kurt Weil cabaret songs in London's Almeida Theatre - she was beautiful and I treasure the memory of it.
"Broken English" with the heartbreaking "The Ballad of Lucy Jordan" is still probably the best introduction to mature Faithfull, though I actually prefer the original mix of the album, that was not released until 2013 (as deluxe reissue) - what the audience heard in 1979 was over-produced Steve Winwood version, that producers thought would sell better - in my opinion, his synthesisers intrude too much and if you can find 2013 release, everything sound much better without them. Recently I have been listening this album again a lot and marvelling how much colder, cleaner and somehow more logical everything sounds without this extra added padding.
Faithfull would go on to continue recording and performing into her seventies, that famous croak becoming raspier with time and she would go on the stage even with a walking stick. I enjoyed her even in the movies - she was empress Maria Theresa in "Marie Antoinette" and a sweet naive widow who turns to sex shop work in "Irina Palm". I lived long enough to see her being finally celebrated as a solo artist and spoken in the same breath as Leonard Cohen. I read both volumes of her memoirs and it saddens me to see how media always focuses on scandals when discussing her - kind of what happened to Billie Holiday, really. I love her music and my all-time favourite Faithfull album would be 1999. "Vagabond Ways". Goodbye, my sweet lady.
p.s.
Just recently discovered a harrowing video clip of obviously unwell Faithfull performing one of her old 1960s songs somewhere on a UK beach, where she had just fallen before the shooting and her dress is all dirty & soiled. She is high as a kite and prancing around - really fascinating in a bad sense - I share it here simply to point how much she changed in the meantime and grew into a well loved and respected artist.
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