Infinitely Losing My Edge
Yeah, I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
The kids are coming up from behind.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids from Ethiopia and from Accra.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.
I'm losing my edge to the internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1964 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Paris and Winnipeg.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Taipei kids in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered nineties.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
I can hear the footsteps every night on the decks.
But I was there.
I was there in 1967 at the first Rodriguez practice in a loft in Detroit.
I was working on the guitar sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie started up his first band.
I told him, "Don't do it that way. You'll never make a dime."
I was there.
I was the first guy playing Symarip to the rap kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
Everybody thought I was crazy.
We all know.
I was there.
I was there.
I've never been wrong.
But I'm losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.
And they're actually really, really nice.
I'm losing my edge.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody.
Every great song by Soul Sonic Force. All the underground hits.
All Sound Behaviour tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Blackbyrds record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying an organ and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Rufus Thomas record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Bluetip,
Au Pairs,
Sight & Sound,
Stiv Bators,
Archie Shepp,
Cybotron,
Inner City,
Subhumans,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Big Daddy Kane,
Laurel Aitken,
Rufus Thomas,
Banda Bassotti,
Aural Exciters,
The Neon Judgement,
Swans,
Qualms,
The Raincoats,
Pagans,
Electric Light Orchestra,
the Slits,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Bronski Beat,
The Detroit Cobras,
Donny Hathaway,
Prince Buster,
Soul Sonic Force,
The Happenings,
Black Sheep,
Electric Prunes,
The Misunderstood,
Soft Machine,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Marvin Gaye,
Can,
Byron Stingily,
Roy Ayers,
Unrelated Segments,
Radiohead,
La Düsseldorf,
Avey Tare,
Black Pus,
Swell Maps,
Urselle,
Danielle Patucci,
World's Most,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Suicide,
Sunsets and Hearts,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Jawbox,
Tommy Roe,
Sex Pistols,
Andrew Hill,
Duran Duran,
Sällskapet,
Sugar Minott,
The Index,
Althea and Donna,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Pantaleimon, Pantaleimon, Pantaleimon, Pantaleimon.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.