Marianne Faithfull was one of the best known faces of the swinging London scene of the sixties. She enjoyed notable success with her first album, as well as an acclaimed movie career, but that all seemed to be forgotten when she was labelled as just being Mick Jagger’s girlfriend. Her reputation was permanently tarnished when she was arrested during a drugs raid at Keith Richards house wearing only a fur rug. Nobody seems to have worried about what any of the men involved were (or were not) wearing at the time.
Faithfull’s life spiralled out of control not long after that incident. She split from Jagger, there were prurient rumours about her sex life, she lost custody of her son and ended up as a homeless heroin addict for much of the 70s.
Nobody expected to hear from her again, until this remarkable album was released in 1979. The vocals are not surprisingly considerably rougher after a decade on the streets, but they are perfectly suited to this angry and powerful album. Musically, it’s a world away from her previously folk tinged pop, being a mix of post punk and new wave synth sounds.
The songs deal with terrorism, mental breakdowns, guilt and an icy cover of John Lennon’s Working Class Hero. The standout track is the closing Why’d Ya Do It about the bitter recriminations of the end of a relationship confronting a partner’s infidelity. Powerful stuff.
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