San Francisco Chronicle - October 7, 2007
Aidin Vaziri, avaziri@sfchronicle.com.

Q: This is pretty heavy stuff. What inspired you to write the lines, "Sometimes I feel like I don't exist/Cut my veins and slit my wrists"?

A: Well, you know, I would say the songs are like little snapshots of places and feelings I've been to. Haven't you ever felt like that?

Q: Only every morning when I wake up.

A: Well, I'm not afraid to express that feeling. I think most people wonder about existence and the pointlessness of it. At the same time, if I were always thinking about it, I simply wouldn't be here to talk to you now.

Q: When was the last time you had a good cry?

A: Not for some time. I went through a lot of tough times, and there were times I would cry a lot. But it's less and less. Crying is a wonderful release, yet there's something exhausting about it. You feel so vulnerable. You don't want to drag yourself day to day on the verge of tears.

Q: On this album you also take on global warming, the war in Iraq, AIDS in Africa and lots of other fun stuff. Have you ever written a happy song?

A: I'm not an ostrich. I live in this world, and I'm not about to pretend that everything is fantastic, because it's not. As a mother, I would love to see a future world where children are born not into medieval circumstances. I'm only touching on the surface with these topics. We could go on.

Q: Would the world be different if women were in charge?

A: I would like to see a feminine balance. The testosterone-driven man does not serve the future well.

Q: What kind of advice do you offer your two daughters, Lola, 16, and Tali, 14?

A: Basic stuff: Please remember your mobile phones. Please don't forget your keys.

Q: That's it?

A: It doesn't serve a young girl well to tell her, "Oh my God! Look what is ahead of you!" They are full of energy and vigor and life. I don't want to ram anything down my daughters' throats. That's a mistake parents make. They're forming their own opinions.

Q: "Coloured Bedspread" sounds like a Eurythmics song. Is there anything from those years that you miss today?

A: No. I'm better in my own skin now than I was back then. I don't miss it at all. It was edgy, and it was challenging.

Q: You didn't exactly make it easy on yourself.

A: That's how I am. That's what makes me tick.

Q: What would Annie Lennox most likely be arrested for?

A: Very little. I'm terribly law- abiding.

Q: What? I thought we were ready to take on the world here.

A: You can do it without breaking the law. If I were arrested, it would probably be for something really banal, like sometimes I sneak a call on my mobile phone while I'm driving without pulling over.

Q: That's not even illegal in the United Sates. Would you at least climb up a tree to save it?

A: No. I would be terrified. I couldn't do that. I work within my own sphere of influence.

To hear Annie Lennox's music, go to www. annielennox.com.

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