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 El Salvador and from Lille.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Buzzcocks show in Bolton.
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 1967 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Tehran.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mexico City 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 1976 at the first Chic practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the sitar sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 the Human League to the funk kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Fela Kuti. All the underground hits.
All Byron Stingily tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Count Five record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a synthesizer and a clarinet and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a X-Ray Spex record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Tears for Fears,
Ornette Coleman,
Sixth Finger,
Electric Prunes,
Gil Scott Heron,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
The Wake,
Zapp,
Toni Rubio,
Rekid,
Eli Mardock,
The Stooges,
The Martian,
Grauzone,
The Walker Brothers,
Sällskapet,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Rhythm & Sound,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
The Victims,
The Smoke,
Cecil Taylor,
E-Dancer,
Alison Limerick,
Letta Mbulu,
Gastr Del Sol,
Roy Ayers,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
T. Rex,
Kerri Chandler,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Babytalk,
The Count Five,
Prince Buster,
Eden Ahbez,
Rites of Spring,
Godley & Creme,
Arab on Radar,
Ten City,
Brass Construction,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Eric Dolphy,
Jandek,
Brick,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Hardrive,
The Skatalites,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Reuben Wilson,
Altered Images,
X-Ray Spex,
Y Pants,
Johnny Clarke,
Aloha Tigers,
Marshall Jefferson,
Public Enemy,
David Axelrod,
Aswad,
World's Most,
Franke,
Youth Brigade,
Todd Terry, Todd Terry, Todd Terry, Todd Terry.
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.