Rolling Stones frontman Sir Mick Jagger has led tributes to “wonderful friend and beautiful singer” Marianne Faithfull following her death aged 78.
Sir Mick was joined by bandmates Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards in paying tribute to the singer and actress, whose version of As Tears Go By reached number nine in the UK singles chart.
In addition to her music career, Faithfull also acted in films including The Girl On A Motorcycle with French actor Alain Delon, as well as theatre productions.
In a post on Instagram, Sir Mick, 81, 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.”
From 1966 to 1970, Faithfull was in a highly publicised relationship with Sir Mick following his split from model and actress Chrissie Shrimpton.
His post was accompanied by a picture of the pair arm in arm.
Also posting to the social media app, Richards, also 81, added: “My heartfelt condolences to Marianne’s family. I am so sad and will miss her.”
His post was accompanied by a picture of the pair enjoying a drink together.
Wood, 77, who joined the Stones first as a touring member in 1975, five years after Faithfull and Sir Mick’s split, added in his Instagram post, featuring a picture of him and Richards in a studio with her: “Farewell dear Marianne.”
A statement from the singer’s family announcing her death said: “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.”
A slew of other celebrities and musicians took to social media to bid farewell the singer.
Heavy metal band Metallica shared a gallery of photos of its band members alongside Faithfull.
The British singer contributed vocals to the song The Memory Remains from the heavy metal band’s 1997 album, Reload.
As well as images of the band and Faithfull in happier times, drummer Lars Ulrich wrote a tribute: “Thank you, Marianne… For the good times, For your kindness, For the great stories, For your fearlessness … And the biggest Thank You … for your incredible and unique contribution to our music, and for always being so willing to join us in performing it … and partake in the ensuing shenanigans!”
He ended the Instagram post: “Rest in Peace – Lars”.
Blur guitarist Graham Coxon shared a tribute of his own on his socials with a heartfelt thank you to the British legend for her impact on his life.
“You’re the only person that said the things I really needed to hear at a time when I really needed to hear them. You gave me the confidence/permission to ‘fly’ and to shake off self-consciousness/doubt – you told me I was beautiful when I felt ugly – 4eva in your debt,” the British singer-songwriter wrote.
The Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess also shared his own memories of the songstress, writing: “Farewell Marianne Faithfull. I first heard Broken English on a school trip in 1980 and it blew my mind. She was such a free spirit and true talent.
“We met in Amsterdam in 1994 and spent an afternoon chatting and in between interviews – going to listen to Why D’Ya Do it, right now.”
English actor James Dreyfus also posted a tribute to Faithfull online, having appearing alongside her in the hit BBC comedy Absolutely Fabulous in 2001.
“RIP Marianne Faithfull. Was lucky enough to work with her on Ab Fab. She was absolutely lovely,” he posted on X.
Irish actor and The Tudors star Jonathan Rhys Meyers wrote on Instagram that he was “sad” after Faithfull’s death, and recalled she was a “very beautiful lady with an acute sense of the world she occupied”, and “elegant and wickedly funny”, after they worked together on the romance film A Grand Affair.
Jurassic Park star Sam Neill recalled his most recent dinner with her, saying “she made me go out, walk a couple of blocks up the hill, buy her a packet of cigarettes, and bring them back to dinner, of which she smoked at least half, while telling outrageous stories in that uniquely smoky voice of hers” in an Instagram post.
Faithfull began her singing career in 1964 after being discovered by Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham.
RIP Marianne Faithfull. ?Was lucky enough to work with her on Ab Fab. She was absolutely lovely… pic.twitter.com/j8Xe6Z2UGi
— James Dreyfus (@DreyfusJames) January 30, 2025
She released her self-titled debut album in 1965, which featured top 10 hits As Tears Go By and Come And Stay With Me, at the same time as follow-up LP Come My Way, which was largely made up of folk covers.
Her first hit, As Tears Go By, charted at number nine, and was followed by a series of successful singles, including This Little Bird, a cover of The Beatles’ Yesterday and Summer Nights.
The singer was famously found wearing nothing but a rug at a drugs bust at Redlands, the country house of Rolling Stones guitarist Richards in 1967.
Faithfull co-wrote Sister Morphine with Sir Mick and Richards from the Rolling Stones’ 1971 album Sticky Fingers, releasing her own version in 1969 featuring guitarist Ry Cooder and Jack Nitzsche on piano.
you’re the only person that said the things I really needed to hear at a time when I really needed to hear https://t.co/o0g2CFa70F gave me the confidence/ permission to “fly” and to shake off self consciousness/doubt-you told me I was beautiful when I felt ugly- 4eva in your debt pic.twitter.com/QVIUnWkTKs
— graham coxon (@grahamcoxon) January 30, 2025
She was credited as a writer on the initial Decca release of her own version, but omitted from later releases prompting a legal dispute which eventually saw her credited on both the Stones and her own reissues.
It has also been claimed that Faithfull inspired Stones songs including You Can’t Always Get What You Want and Dear Doctor, while it has also been reported that The Beatles’ And Your Bird Can Sing was inspired by her and Sir Mick’s relationship.
Following her split with Sir Mick, Faithfull spent two years on the streets of Soho while addicted to heroin before living in a squat.
The singer also performed a duet of Sonny And Cher’s I Got You Babe with David Bowie on his The 1980 Floor Show, which was broadcast in the US in 1973 and saw Faithfull dressed as a nun.
Singer and former Stooges frontman Iggy Pop also posted a tribute on Instagram which said “she was a gemstone” accompanied with a picture of the cover of her Broken English album.
Faithfull 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.
Her final album was an experimental collaboration with Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds’ Australian multi-instrumentalist Warren Ellis, called She Walks In Beauty (2021).
Recently she had enjoyed a resurgence and was said to be admired by the likes of Kate Moss and Courtney Love.
In 2006, it was announced that she had made a full recovery from breast cancer.
But the cancer was found in its “earliest stages” and following surgery, she announced she would resume her tour the next year.
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.”
The breast cancer came two years after Faithfull, a former smoker, was forced to cancel her European tour after collapsing backstage at a gig.
The singer was diagnosed with exhaustion and ordered to rest for three months.
Farewell Marianne FaithfullI first heard Broken English on a school trip in 1980and it blew my mind. She was such a free spirit and true talent. We met in Amsterdam in 1994 and spent an afternoon chatting and in between interviews – going to listen to Why D’Ya Do it, right now pic.twitter.com/YxgxeOKOdL
— Tim Burgess (@Tim_Burgess) January 30, 2025
In 2005, filmmaker Duncan Roy announced that Faithfull had stepped down from his screen version of The Picture Of Dorian Gray because she had suffered a heart attack, which she denied.
In April 2020, it was announced that the singer had been admitted to hospital after contracting Covid. She was released from hospital three weeks later.
The daughter of a British military officer and an Austro-Hungarian Jewish baroness, Faithfull recently appeared in Sofia Coppola’s film Marie Antoinette.
She made a guest appearance as God in the TV sitcom Absolutely Fabulous, with actress Anita Pallenberg, the former girlfriend of Stones members Brian Jones and Keith Richards, playing the devil.
One of her earliest films was I’ll Never Forget What’s ‘Is Name (1967), alongside Orson Welles, and she recently provided the voice of Bene Gesserit Ancestor in Dune (2021).
