Back in the late '60s, when punk neophytes like Patti Smith were innocent young poesy- scribbling pups hiding from society at the nearest art school, actress/ singer Marianne Faithfull was already playing up the role of a regal and decadent rock n' roll chanteuse. Faithfull's unique voice is part scratchy, cigarette- seared rasp, and, occasionally, hints at Patti Smith's more protean whooping. Unfortunately, more than a few pundits wrote Faithfull off as just an insubstantial tag-along in the Rolling Stones' exclusive entourage-- sometimes seen as little more than the band's chummy sex kitten. And, unfortunately, it wouldn't be long before she would descend into the ravaging needle- and- spoon depths of junkiedom.

Often, Faithfull could be brilliant, controversial and poetic. And now, her vastly underrated body of work for Island records is collected here on this 20-song two-disc set, A Perfect Stranger. Look no farther than "Why Dya Do It," for the sort of unmitigated venom that makes today's supposed "feminist" spokespersons like Ani DiFranco and Kathleen Hanna seem like tame nursery- rhyming infants. In fact, the explicit "Why Dya Do It" could easily be the one of the most mercilessly brutal songs about jealous rage ever put to music by any songwriter, male or female, in the history of rock n' roll. (And no, I won't quote any lyrics. Go out and buy the album, people). And of course, this compilation also includes the brilliant and wistful 1964 smash hit, "As Tears Go By," that Faithfull penned with pals Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.

Hearing her songs in compilation form like this, it's also easier to realize the diverse array of musical styles Faithfull grasped and experimented with-- everything from her flirtations with Weimar-era- style cabaret music, "Ballad of the Soldier's Wife" and the plaintive "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," to the more conventional '80s synth-pop of "Truth Bitter Truth" and "Running from our Lives." Her later work finds her in an especially reflective and ruminative mood-- understandably-- as one who's obviously teetered on the precipice of an unromantic death and lived to reminisce about it. The title track and "Gloomy Sunday" are both eloquent and decidedly somber while "Blazing Away," with its supple lap steel guitar runs, gives off a lush, old-school country feel.

The only truly weak spots are few and far between: her rendition of John Lennon's "Working Class Hero" seems a little forced and diluted. There's a merely passable version of the oft- covered "Trouble In Mind" sung as a plodding torch song, embellished by some muted Miles Davis trumpet lines. Yet she effortlessly personalizes Lennon's "Isolation" and Tom Waits's "Strange Weather," bringing her own indelible signature to the overall sound.

Like her once death- defying male contemporaries Lou Reed, Keith Richards, and a mere handful of others, Faithfull is a survivor extraordinaire. Drugs and drink drove her life and career to the brink of total disintegration. Yet here it is 1999, and she's conquered her demons and continues to write songs and record new material. As this Island collection undoubtedly shows, her body of work runs the gamut: from the gutsy, mature and expressive songs, to lighter, more obvious attempts at pop accessibility. In later years, her tastes began to favor more funereal, almost dirge-like explorations.

Faithfull never fails to tackle serious subject matter and pen lyrics with an artistry and sophistication that's rarely matched these days. And judging by the caliber of musicians that have made significant contributions to the songs on A Perfect Stranger (Jagger and Richards, Marc Ribot, Bill Frisell, Chris Spedding, Robert Quine, to name only a handful of luminaries), she's still being appreciated, at least in certain circles, as nothing less than rock and roll royalty.

-Michael Sandlin