ICONIC singer Marianne Faithfull, best known for the song As Tears Go By, has died at the age of 78.
The sad news was broken this evening by a spokesperson for the legendary artist.
Marianne, who was known for her high profile relationship with The Rolling Stones’ lead singer Mick Jagger, passed away today, surrounded by her family.
They shared a statement which read: “It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of the singer, songwriter and actress Marianne Faithfull.
“Marianne passed away peacefully in London today, in the company of her loving family.
“She will be dearly missed.”
Marianne was born on December 29, 1946 in Hampstead, London.
She skyrocketed to fame in 1964 when she was just 16-years-old at a party for the Rolling Stones.
Marianne was discovered by Andrew Loog Oldham and would go on to become recognised as one of the most original British female singer-songwriters.
Before this the artist had been scoring low-level coffeehouse gigs performing folk music.
But her debut album Marianne Faithfull, released in 1965, saw her shoot to stardom.
The singer was in a relationship with ‘ Mick Jagger from 1966 to 1970.
Her romance with Jagger helped inspired the Rolling Stones classic Sympathy for the Devil.
It featured on the 1968 album Beggars Banquet which was inspired by a book given to Jagger by Marianne called The Master and Margarita.
Meanwhile You Can’t Always Get What You Want, on their 1969 album Let It Bleed, was supposedly written and composed by Marianne.
And, hits Wild Horses and I Got the Blues were inspired by her – while she co-wrote Sister Morphine.
While dating the rock icon Marianne also broke into the acting world.
She was a household name with starring roles in hits including I’ll Never Forget What’s’isname, The Girl on a Motorcycle and Hamlet.
Marianne’s popularity took a dip in the 1970s after she took a step back from the limelight.
She had bravely been candid about her struggles with an eating disorder and drug use.
But in 1979 the industry legend made a comeback with her album Broken English.
It saw her nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.
She re-invented herself in 1987 as a jazz and blues singer with the critically acclaimed Strange Weather, and in the same decade went into rehab.
Marianne was also a prolific writer, with three books about her life, Faithfull: An Autobiography, Memories, Dreams & Reflections , and Marianne Faithfull: A Life on Record.
In 2009, Marianne received the World Lifetime Achievement Award at the Women’s World Awards.
The Government of France also made her a Commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
HEALTH BATTLES
In the early 2000s, Marianne faced a number of health scares.
In 2004 she called off the European leg of a world tour, promoting Before The Poison after collapsing on stage in Milan.
She was hospitalised for exhaustion and she was back on stage by 2005.
But in 2006 Marianne was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo surgery.
The tumor was caught at an early stage and the singer made a full recovery.
She was quoted as saying at the time: “It has been an extraordinary experience and, in many ways, extremely positive.
“I didn’t realise how many true friends I had. I feel so lucky and loved and thank everybody for all their good thoughts.”
Then in 2007 the iconic artist opened up about her hepatitis C diagnosis on This Morning.
She revealed she was informed she had the condition over a decade prior to the interview.
The following year another tour was cancelled and her manager, who was also her long-term partner, François Ravard blamed “general mental, physical and nervous exhaustion”.
Marianne then suffered a back injury and broken hip in 2013 and 2014 respectively which saw more concerts cancelled.
She was later open about her long-Covid battle in 2021.
The singer recorded her album She Walks in Beauty just before the first Covid-19 lockdown during which Marianne said she nearly died of the disease.
She was then hospitalised for three weeks with pneumonia.
