Rolling Stones Muse and Singer Marianne Faithfull Dead at 78

Actress, singer, and Rolling Stones muse Marianne Faithfull has died. According to BBC News, she was 78. No cause of death has been reported, but Faithfull has faced a number of ailments over the year, including a bout with COVID-19 in 2020 that almost took her life.

“It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of the singer, songwriter and actress Marianne Faithfull,” a statement read. “Marianne passed away peacefully in London today, in the company of her loving family. She will be dearly missed.”

She is best known for her hit music career with songs like “As Tears Go By,” also marked the beginning of her relationship with The Rolling Stones, Keith Richards, and later boyfriend Mick Jagger. The song, written by the Stones leaders and manager Andrew Loog Oldham, was a hit twice on both sides of the Atlantic by landing in the respective Top 10.

Her four-year relationship with Jagger inspired several songs from the Stones catalog, including “Wild Horses” and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” She suffered from a heroin addiction during this relationship and continued into the ’70s. With 1979’s Broken English, she mounted a comeback into the music world and earned acclaim for the album. This includes a Grammy nomination and renewed success.

She also enjoyed collaborations with other musicians over the years, including David Bowie, Lou Reed, Jarvis Cocker from Pulp, Damon Albarn from Blur and Gorillaz, Metallica, and Emmylou Harris. She recently worked with PJ Harvey and Nick Cave.

Away from music, Faithfull was also an actress, appearing in stage productions for Chekov’s Three Sisters and a very “chemically enhanced” portrayal of Ophelia in Hamlet. She also starred in The Girl On A Motorcycle, appeared on Absolutely Fabulous, and appeared in Tom Wait’s musical The Black Rider.

She received the World Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2009 Women’s World Awards, was named a “commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres” in France, and has countless fans across the decades. She is survived by her son, Nicholas Dubar.