It's funny, you know - time does travel pretty quickly, and I do have good friends, and the further away I go from them in location, it matters that I keep on the same line and the same groove that I had and preserve that groove with people who I see seldom.

I've been scared and I've liked not hanging on to stuff where I know that I'm in my comfort zone.

It's crucial that I kind of keep up, without drifting into the backslapping land of cliche and lifetime achievement awards.

So for a long time I closed my eyes to the possibility of America having a white voice.

No matter what we say, entertainers are usually quite insecure, wobbly characters underneath, and maybe that bit of glory or that bit of expression or whatever it is compensates in some area.

Whenever I have bid a hasty goodbye to a loved one, I've always made sure that my record collection was safely stored away in the boot of the car.

I put a lot of work into my lyrics. Not all my stuff is meant to be scrutinized, though.