Cat Power and Iggy Pop have shared a cover of “Working Class Hero” from the new compilation “The Faithful: A Tribute to Marianne Faithfull”, which will be released this weeky (Marianne Faithfull initially took a crack at the John Lennon track for her 1979 album, “Broken English”). The new covers collection also features Lydia Lunch, Bush Tetras, Peaches, Shirley Manson, and more, and all proceeds from the release will be donated to Faithfull, who’s been recovering from long COVID.
“Marianne has lived a life,” Chan Marshall said in a statement. “She is a queen to all who know her, and all who adore her! Her framework of contributions to the world of music is unmistakable! Every time I hear her gorgeous vocal sway, I am moved, I am closer to permanence. In a world of dizzying, new fizzling arrows of song and voices, Marianne has always struck the bullseye of my heart and soul. I adore her like no other. A true Dame, beyond words. Royalty forever.”
In 2020, news came that Marianne Faithfull was deathly ill from Covid. The virus was at a murderous high then and it affected her in the worst way possible, causing her to lose consciousness, necessitating a rush to an intensive care unit where she was intubated with little hope of survival. “All I know is that I was in a very dark place,” Faithfull said “Presumably, it was death.”
Faithfull survived, but the intensity of the virus, combined with her underlying condition of emphysema, compromised her lungs to the point where she may never be able to sing again. That left her with a double whammy – the potential loss of any fresh source of income and the steep cost of recovery from long Covid. While her situation has been deeply concerning for many fans, one of them actually decided to do something about it.
Tanya Donelly, who helped form the bands Throwing Muses, the Breeders and Belly, came to Faithfull’s music from a very different angle. When she was growing up, her parents played Faithfull’s 60s recordings, back when her voice had a light quaver and her music a folk tinge. For the tribute, Donelly paired with the harmony trio Parkington Sisters on a cover of “This Little Bird”, a major hit for Faithfull in 1965. “Her voice on that song was very much a part of my childhood,” Donelly said. “I also sang it to my kids as a lullaby.”
Despite the delicacy of Faithfull’s original recording, Donelly detected a tug of sadness in it. “Her singing in that song has that sweetness and that darkness,” she said. “She’s a master at balancing the two.”
“I wanted to come up with something that would make as much money for Marianne as possible,” said Tanya Pearson, who heads the Women of Rock Oral History Project, which chronicles the work of female rock musicians. “I considered organizing a benefit concert, but at the time the pandemic was still going.”
Instead, she decided to try to create a combination tribute/benefit album featuring stars covering songs Faithfull has famously recorded. “The easy part was finding musicians who were willing to donate their time and effort,” Pearson said of the project, which began more than two years ago. “Finding a label to forgo any profit was a lot harder.”
After much searching, Pearson finally found a small label called In the Q, which this week, in conjunction with Bandbox, will issue a double vinyl set titled The Faithfull. The package, which will also be available on streaming services, boasts 19 tracks by stars such as Shirley Manson, Cat Power, Iggy Pop, Peaches, the Bush Tetras and more. Though most of the artists involved are women, Pearson said that was solely due to the industry contacts she has through the Women of Rock Oral Oral History Project.
“The Faithful” is out on 8th December.
The Fat Angel Sings 