As part of Saturday's Record Store Day festivities, Decca will release the final recordings of Marianne Faithfull on vinyl.  The four-song EP Burning Moonlight harkens back to the late artist's very first albums, released in 1965 on the same label: one dedicated to pop music, and the other to folk songs.  The title track to Burning Moonlight was issued digitally in the past weeks; tomorrow, "She Moved Through the Fair" will arrive on streaming services.  Finally, on June 6, the entire EP will be released digitally.  We were thrilled to speak with Andrew Batt, executive producer of Burning Moonlight, about this very special release as well as future plans for the Faithfull catalogue.  Longtime readers of TSD will recognize Andrew as a leading light in the reissue realm, responsible for key projects in recent years celebrating the discographies of such artists as Bobbie Gentry, Richard and Linda Thompson, Dana Gillespie, Fairport Convention, and Sandy Denny as well as Marianne.

Andrew, could you share how your love of Marianne's music began, and how you first came to work with her?

I can't recall when I first heard Marianne's music, as somehow it feels like it's always been part of the fabric of my life. The first record I bought when it was released though was A Secret Life, her 1995 collaboration with Angelo Badalamenti which I loved; after that I was hooked, and decided I had to have it all! I was fortunate enough to reissue A Secret Life with Marianne's participation for RSD in 2023 - a great personal moment! Especially as Marianne felt the album had been neglected in her back catalogue.

I first got to know Marianne in the early to mid 2000s and in those days, I did websites; I created a website and socials for her before I moved into catalogue reissues and A&R which was something Marianne helped me to do. Sometime in 2023, Marianne wanted to get back to work but given her precarious health she knew doing an album would be a challenge; an EP however felt manageable. She was particularly keen to record again because She Walks in Beauty she viewed as a treasured side project, she didn't see it as a 'Marianne Faithfull' record, and after Negative Capability she felt she had more to say. We had become particularly close in her final years and she asked me if I would executive-produce the EP. To produce the music, she asked her long-standing collaborator and friend Head who first worked with her on Before the Poison, one of her great records; he went on to work on most of her subsequent releases and also accompanied her on stage right through to her final tour.

Who had the original concept of dedicating one side of the EP to pop and one side to folk, echoing her debut 1965 albums?

The EP had been conceived as a special release to mark Marianne's 60th anniversary in music. When we first approached the concept of what the EP would be, it was originally going to feature three originals and a cover of 'Losing My Religion': she had recently got to know Michael Stipe and loved the REM song. She thought she could take it in a new direction and put her inimitable 'Marianne' stamp on it. This concept changed, however, when I started working on the reissue of Marianne's complete U.K. Decca recordings. After years of ambivalence, Marianne had come to love her Decca albums and felt they hadn't received the critical attention they deserved; these reissues became an important way for her to discuss her early musical choices, as she wanted people to understand them better. As I got further into the Decca project, I suggested we base the EP around her first two albums as it was such an unusual move for a new musical star to emerge onto the scene with two albums in different genres on the same day. Marianne readily agreed, believing it was the perfect way to mark the anniversary, especially as the EP would be released by Decca, marking her return to the label that had made her name. In this way, both projects we were working on would be connected which felt very fitting.

Marianne had wanted to release some more folk for a long time, especially 'Three Kinsmen Bold,' a traditional song her father had taught her, and we also looked at another traditional song called 'The Sailor and His Bride' before opting for a new version of 'She Moved Through the Fair'. This felt more appropriate as Marianne had performed it throughout her life having first recorded it in 1966 for North Country Maid. Marianne was fond of revisiting tracks at different periods in her career as she found they took on new meanings.  Having spent years on the road she maintained a continuous dialogue with her favourite songs and sometimes took them back into the studio. All three versions of 'As Tears Go By,' for example, are very special and illustrate the song in different but equally valid ways, and this new version of 'She Moved Through the Fair' is an emotive counterpoint to her first recording. For the pop side, Marianne had the idea of writing a song inspired by the opening line of 'As Tears Go By,' which was our title track 'Burning Moonlight' and after the rich melancholy of Negative Capability she was keen to do something more optimistic in a pop style that harked back to her Decca hits, which became 'Love Is'. Although I could never describe Marianne as a nostalgic person, she was very into looking back in her final years; she said it helped her move forward, and I think you can hear that here, as the EP does not sound like a repeat of any of her earlier albums.  The songs give her a new musical language, but it is one that is firmly embedded in her past. Marianne knew this would likely be her final release and fully embraced the idea that it would close the circle and take her back to the beginning.

These songs - new and old - feel simultaneously nostalgic and completely of the moment. What special qualities did Marianne bring as a vocalist to a composition - whether her own, a traditional folk song, or a pop number?

Like all great artists Marianne's vocal style is sui generis: as soon as one hears that voice, it could be nobody else. It doesn't matter what genre she performs in, Marianne's singing possesses an authenticity that allows her to communicate deep emotions without ever sounding contrived or over embellished.  The listener feels the honesty of her performance, and they understand that this purity of expression comes from the sort of knowledge that only experience can teach you.

Obviously, this release is incredibly bittersweet in light of Marianne's passing. What do you hope her many fans take away from this release?  Every aspect - from the packaging to the sound to, of course, the music itself - is truly exquisite.

Marianne's recording career stretched an incredible 60 years and she was working to the end...that's a hell of an achievement. Despite increasing ill health, she was determined to finish the release, to 'sign off' on her own terms and in her own way. I hope fans see the release as a reflection of her unique talent and indomitable spirit.

Are there any future plans for Marianne's catalogue which you might be able to share at this time, and any chance to hear more unreleased material?

Yes! I mentioned it earlier but following on from the Decca-inspired EP, this summer we reissue Marianne's complete U.K. Decca discography.

Here at Second Disc HQ, we're all incredibly excited about that!

The original albums will be out again on vinyl including a new two LP collection of singles, B-sides and rarities; and the whole lot will be released on a 6-CD boxset. There are a few unreleased tracks, but the real advantage is Marianne's commentary in my sleeve notes, and the fact that I've been able to remaster everything from the master tapes so the sound quality is superior to anything that has been released before. Generally, reissues of her '60s work have been pressed from transfers done sometimes as far back as the late '90s so the quality uplift on this project is noticeable - tracks like 'As Tears Go By' should blow people away with the clarity and detail that has been revealed. It all looks so beautiful, too! The artwork is by Eric Terino (who also did Burning Moonlight), and we were able to source original images for covers and the like, so the visual quality of these reissues is incredibly high. Marianne was very pleased with how it all turned out, and she hoped these forthcoming reissues will lead to her Decca work being re-assessed and better understood.

We're sure that will be the case, Andrew, and can't wait to hear them and read your accompanying notes.  Thanks so much for taking the time to speak with TSD about this artist whom we all cherish so much, and thank you for keeping her legacy so beautifully burnished.  We look forward to picking up our copies of Burning Moonlight tomorrow!