The Faithful: A Tribute to Marianne Faithfull, an all-star benefit from In The Q Records & BANDBOX, along with the Women of Rock Oral History Project, have gathered artists from a wide array of genres to cover 19 iconic songs from the Faithfull legacy catalog.
Shirley Manson, Peaches, Lydia Lunch, Tanya Donelly, Cat Power, Iggy Pop, Bush Tetras, and Donita Sparks are among the legions of artists who pay tribute to the counterculture legend. All profits from the project will go directly to assist Faithfull as she recovers from the effects of long COVID.
The distinct eras that Faithfull has embedded into the pop culture consciousness defy labels. As the wispy-haired muse of Mick Jagger during the 1960s, her fragile delivery of "As Tears Go By" and the French chanson-style "Summer Nights" contrast wildly to later songs like "Broken English" and its synth-driven melody bubbling under her cracked voice (due to severe laryngitis, smoking and drug abuse). A force on stage and screen as well as in music, she experienced innumerable peaks and valleys throughout a long and exceedingly diverse career, which included collaborations with artists as far flung as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Joe Jackson, Damon Albarn and Metallica. "Before The Poison," a song co-written with PJ Harvey in 2004, perhaps best sums up the darkly fantastic tonal quality that many artists have considered something akin to raw honesty manifested.
Though her highest-charting singles mostly appeared during the 1960s, she has experienced multiple resurgences throughout the decades. Her most recent release, 2021's She Walks in Beauty, featured spoken-word recitations from Faithfull alongside music from longtime Nick Cave collaborator Warren Ellis.
Among the eclectic roster contributing to Faithful, Cat Power and Iggy Pop add tribal vocals and beats to "Working Class Hero," Lydia Lunch snarls and teases her way through "Love, Life and Money," and Shirley Manson & Peaches throw shade and velvet anger on the EDM-style take on "Why'd Ya Do It."
The full album will be available on streaming platforms Dec. 8 and special edition vinyl variants can be pre-ordered via in the Q Records and BANDBOX. The double LP features original artwork by Jill Emery (Hole, Mazzy Star).
Track List:
Disc One – Side A
Tracy Bonham – "As Tears Go By"
Tanya Donelly & the Parkington Sisters – "This Little Bird"
Josie Cotton – "Summer Nights"
Sylvia Black – "Sister Morphine"
Cat Power & Iggy Pop – "Working Class Hero"
Disc One – Side B
Shirley Manson & Peaches – "Why D'Ya Do It"
Pom Poms – "Brain Drain"
Bush Tetras - "Guilt"
Joan As Policewoman – "Broken English"
Tammy Faye Starlite & Barry Reynolds – "The Ballad Of Lucy Jordan"
Disc Two – Side C
Honeychild Coleman – "Over Here (No Time For Justice)"
Adele Bertei – "Times Square"
Nicole Atkins & Jim Sclavunos – "Strange Weather"
Lydia Lunch – "Love, Life, and Money"
Cynthia Ross (the B Girls) & Tim Bovaconti – "Vagabond Ways"
Disc Two – Side D
Donita Sparks – "Sliding Through Life on Charm"
Miss Guy – "Sex With Strangers"
FaithNYC – "Kissin’ Time"
Feminine Aggression – "Before The Poison"