Marianne Faithfull Quotes

I am really a very shy person. If I appear, it is because of the music, not because I want to be seen.

Looking back on my early romantic life, I was more worried about what impression I made on my dates than what I thought of them. I would approach them as though they were job interviews, trying to wow the man so that he would ask me out again and I got the 'job.'

I never want to draw attention to myself, but that's all I do.

I kind of keep my personality in my pocket a lot. When I start to do stand-up, that's not my true personality either. It's the personality of a guy who hasn't been able to say what he wanted to say.

Even now, I have traces of the good little girl. When I am not performing, for instance, I am really very quiet and ordinary.

Actors fall into this trap if they missed being loved for who they really were and not for what they could do - sing, dance, joke about - then they take that as love.

I figured if I played in the no-man's land of intimacy, I would learn to be a performer.

You don't realize you're vying for the approval of everyone so much until being yourself is not approved of.

For me, there's no dichotomy between being shy or a performer, because I think it's more a way of slightly presenting a version of things to the world.

I was someone that loved to seek attention when I was younger.

I hope people don't get tired of looking at me.

And I think that, of course, there is some dysfunction of needing to be liked or noticed or to feel part of things, something going on there for most actors. For some there's not and I think they really struggle with it.

Lots of shy people dress a bit too much. It's just kind of an armour. People say the same thing about me.

If anything, I want to please people too much.

Everyone is insecure. I think, really, it comes from, like, a desire to want to be in control of how you're represented.

For me, in some ways, my whole life is a bit performative and always has been - because I'm stared at and looked at everywhere I go.

I have a dread of sounding pretentious and try not to talk too much about what I do.

I probably am more shy than people realize. But I'm shy when I leave a studio and I am just myself.

I'm a bad interview because I want to always feel like I'm being totally honest, but at the same time, I'm absolutely paranoid. That combination results in a lot of spaces.

I was really kind of shy as a child. But I would do things for attention.

All I wanted was attention from girls when I was a kid. Then I got my braces off, and then there was too much attention, and I was also mad that they didn't pay attention to me in the first place. Then I was just like, I couldn't put on blinders and focus on one because there were too many options.

I'm not a very gregarious person. I can't bear attention being called to me in a public place, which is ridiculous in a business that pays you to be noticed.

I've always been really shy. I was always afraid of any kind of confrontation.

People think I'm so strong, but I'm very shy.

I have this complex that if I walk into a place wearing a colorful shirt someone will stop me and say, 'I'm sorry, but the Latin band comes through the other door.'