New release by late icon Marianne Faithfull marks poignant milestone

British singer Marianne Faithfull continues to leave a lasting impact on the music scene, even after her passing. Four new songs that Faithfull was working on before her death will be released in celebration of her multi-decade career.

The tracks will be collected in a new EP called Burning Moonlight and will be released on World Record Store Day on April 12, while the full digital EP will be released later in the year.

Her record label Decca said Faithfull had been working on new recordings over the year leading up to her death which were inspired by her two debut albums from 1965, Marianne Faithfull and Come My Way.

Writing on her official Instagram, a spokesperson for Decca said new tracks were recorded to celebrate her 60th anniversary in music.

“Mixing her pop roots with her folk influences these four last songs bring Marianne’s career full circle and reflect a lifetime of musical creativity,” the spokesperson wrote. 

 

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In a recently released statement, her son Nicholas Dunbar said Faithfull, “lived to create and perform music.”

“It was her driving force and she never stopped,” Dunbar said.

“Right up until the end she was looking forward to this release which now completes and celebrates her remarkable artistic career.”

Faithfull sadly passed away at the age of 78.

A spokesperson for Faithfull announced her passing on Thursday, January 30 in a statement issued to the BBC, revealing she died surrounded by her “loving family”.

“It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of the singer, songwriter and actress Marianne Faithfull,” the statement read.

“Marianne passed away peacefully in London today, in the company of her loving family. She will be dearly missed.”

Born December 29, 1946, Faithfull’s music career began in 1964 when she was discovered by record producer Andrew Loog Oldham while attending a party for the Rolling Stones.

From 1966 to 1970, Faithfull’s life and career were further shaped by her highly publicised romantic relationship with Mick Jagger.

Her growing popularity was also fuelled by film roles such as those in I’ll Never Forget What’s’isname (1967), The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968) and Hamlet (1969). However, her popularity became overshadowed in the 1970s by personal problems such as homelessness and heroin addiction.

Following a prolonged absence from the spotlight, Faithfull made a triumphant return with the release of her critically acclaimed seventh studio album Broken English in 1979, then released a series of influential studio albums, including Dangerous Acquaintances (1981), A Child’s Adventure (1983) and Strange Weather (1987).

-with Reuters.