The ’60s just might have been the ultimate decade for It Girls. As the worlds of fashion, music, film and art experienced an unprecedented surge of stylish, youthful energy, countless cool women made their mark on the culture. Chief among these ’60s It Girls was Marianne Faithfull, the blonde beauty who was one of the biggest icons of the British invasion—and who sadly passed away at 78 on January 30, having lived a legendary life filled with all kinds of creative projects and comebacks.
Faithfull made a major impact with ’60s hits like “As Tears Go By” and “Come and Stay With Me,” and went on the have a tumultuous personal and professional life. In her later years, she was known as a true rock survivor who overcame a long battle with addiction and various health struggles, and she’ll forever be admired for her music, acting, style and relationships.
Here’s a look back at Marianne Faithfull‘s early days, with some fabulous photos and fascinating facts about one of the ultimate muses—and artists—during a pivotal time for pop.
Marianne Faithfull was discovered by the manager of the Rolling Stones
Faithfull was just 17 when she was first discovered. At a party in 1964, she had a fateful encounter with Andrew Loog Oldham, the manager of the Rolling Stones. He asked her if she could sing, she said yes and a week later, he had her come into the studio to record “As Tears Go By.”
Her first hit was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards
“As Tears Go By” was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, and was one of their earliest collaborations as songwriters, as the Rolling Stones mostly played covers when they first started.
Jagger and Richards were in their early 20s when they wrote the song, but they managed to perfectly capture the wistfulness and nostalgia of aging with their poignant words—an impressive feat that set them up for decades of unforgettable lyrics. After Faithfull’s passing, the 60-year-old track has become more emotionally resonant than ever.
The song topped the UK pop charts and made it to Billboard‘s top 40 in the US. The next year the Stones had a hit with their own version of the song. To this day, “As Tears Go By” remains Faithfull’s biggest and best known hit.
She dated Mick Jagger and inspired his music
Faithfull dated Jagger from 1966 to 1970, and the relationship between the two charismatic Swinging London musicians was the subject of much media coverage.
She was also said to have inspired some of the Rolling Stones’ most famous songs, including “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” and “Wild Horses.”
Looking back on her high-profile relationship, Faithfull told Rolling Stone, “It almost destroyed me. Although it was wonderful, it was only four years. It was a wonderful time, and he was great, but I don’t think I fit into that life or what he wanted in a woman, that’s all. I couldn’t do it.”
While Faithfull and Jagger’s relationship had its share of drama due to affairs, drug use and Faithfull suffering a miscarriage, she stayed close to the Stones frontman’s heart, and in an Instagram post following her death, he wrote, “I am so saddened to hear of the death of Marianne Faithfull. She was so much part of my life for so long. She was a wonderful friend, a beautiful singer and a great actress. She will always be remembered.”
She was also more than just a singer
Faithfull began acting in the late ’60s, and starred in the kitschy 1968 film The Girl on a Motorcycle, playing the sexy, catsuit-clad title character. She also appeared in the 1967 film I’ll Never Forget What’s ‘Isname and played Ophelia in a 1969 adaptation of Hamlet.
She continued to act in later decades, and took on a memorable supporting role in the 2006 film Marie Antoinette. In 2021, her voice was used in the sci-fi blockbuster Dune.
Marianne Faithfull had a tragic downfall — and a surprising second act
Faithfull will always be seen as a ’60s icon, and the ’70s were a difficult time for her. She faced drama in her personal life and descended into addiction, leading her to fight her demons for the better part of the decade.
In 1976, Faithfull attempted a comeback with her first country album, Dreamin’ My Dreams. Three years later, her 1979 album Broken English put her back in the game in a big way. The album was much darker than her previous work, and her once angelic voice was raspy from years of drug use. While her voice was decidedly different, it was undeniably compelling, and the album became the most acclaimed work of her career.
Faithfull continued to release music into her later years, and dabbled in cabaret music and spoken word performance. Her final album, She Walks in Beauty, from 2021, saw her performing British romantic poems set to music—and showed that she was still an idiosyncratic performer and anything but a nostalgia act.
In a 2011 Vanity Fair interview, Faithfull admitted that she had mixed feelings about being seen as a ’60s muse, saying, “I’m sick of talking about it. It would be great if people could see me as I see myself, which is as a working musician with an incredible arc of work. I’ve got such a body of work behind me. It’s much more important than my mythical life. And my life is mythical.”
Few artists have come back up from rock bottom quite like Faithfull, and her journey from sweet pop star to weathered and world-weary chanteuse made her one of the most unique female artists to emerge from the ’60s. In the wake of her tragic passing, it’s clear that the mythology around her will only grow, and her wonderfully eclectic art will continue to inspire.
