Marianne Faithfull Part 1: "As Tears Go By" (1964)

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Marianne Faithfull was the quintessential swinging 60s British mod beauty who shot to stardom as a teenager. “As Tears Go By” was an early Mick Jagger-Keith Richards composition and certainly their first ballad. Stones manager Andrew Oldham received co-writing credit but Jagger was primary writer. The Stones did not record the song first. Oldham gave “As Tears Go By” to 17-year-old Faithfull who just happened to be Jagger’s girlfriend. The song was a hit reaching #2 in the UK and #22 US and the Stones version came out on 1965 hitting #6 US. Faithfull enjoyed late 60s success with several other UK hits though none coming close to “As Tears Go By.” She parlayed singing success and celebrity notoriety into an acting career. Faithfull starred in the movies “The Girl on a Motorcycle” (1968) and as Ophelia in “Hamlet” (1969). However, fame can be fleeting.....