Synopsis

Annie Lennox performs Bob Marley's "Waiting in Vain" in an apartment transformed into a stage for domestic absurdity. Several versions of Lennox appear at once, moving through the rooms in a black maid's outfit and oversized Mickey Mouse-style ears. They dust, sweep, polish and attend to household chores with exaggerated precision while Lennox sings directly to the camera. The deliberately repetitive routine turns the song's theme of unreturned devotion into a surreal portrait of someone endlessly waiting, working and hoping for attention.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video promotes Lennox's 1995 recording of Bob Marley's song, originally released by Bob Marley and the Wailers on the 1977 album "Exodus."

• "Waiting in Vain" was the third single from "Medusa," an album made entirely from cover versions. It followed the successful singles "No More 'I Love You's" and "A Whiter Shade of Pale."

• Lennox's version was recorded at The Aquarium Studios in London and released as a single in September 1995.

• The video's use of several Lennoxes reinforces the song's sense of repetition: the performer is surrounded by different versions of herself, yet remains locked into the same routine.

• The maid costume and cartoon-like ears give the clip a deliberately artificial, theatrical quality rather than presenting the song as a straightforward romantic performance.

• The single reached No. 31 on the UK Singles Chart, giving Lennox another Top 40 entry during the "Medusa" campaign.