Here's a rewritten version of the obituary:
Marianne Faithfull: The Singer Who Defied Expectations and Reinvented Herself
Marianne Faithfull, who has passed away at 78, was more than just a '60s pop sensation or Mick Jagger’s ethereal muse—she was a fiercely resilient artist who endured personal struggles to carve out a decades-long career in music and beyond.
Though first introduced to the world as the delicate-voiced singer of As Tears Go By, Faithfull defied expectations, navigating addiction, personal turmoil, and reinvention to release 22 solo albums and collaborate with some of music’s biggest names. Her comeback in the late '70s with Broken English cemented her as an artist of raw honesty and survival.
Faithfull’s journey into music began when Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham discovered her at a Stones launch party in 1964. At just 17, she had already begun performing as a folk singer, but Oldham saw her potential for pop stardom.
Her upbringing had prepared her for the whirlwind of the swinging '60s. Born in Hampstead, London, she was the daughter of Eva Erisso, a Viennese baroness and former ballet dancer, and Glynn Faithfull, a British army intelligence officer. She spent her early years in a commune at Braziers Park in Oxfordshire before attending a convent school in Reading, Berkshire.
Faithfull’s rise was swift. Oldham paired her with the Jagger-Richards composition As Tears Go By, which the Rolling Stones had yet to record themselves. The song became a hit, and she followed it with a string of successful singles, including Come and Stay With Me, This Little Bird, and Summer Nights. Between 1964 and 1965, she landed in the UK Top 10 four times and achieved a Top 40 hit with a cover of The Beatles’ Yesterday.
But Faithfull’s career was only just beginning, and the path ahead would be anything but conventional.
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