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 Bahrain and from Houston.
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 1965 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Winnipeg and Woodstock.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Hong Kong 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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the harpsichord sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Derrick May to the crunk kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Judy Mowatt. All the underground hits.
All the Swans tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Girls At Our Best! 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 '60s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a chamberlin and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Faust record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a linndrum.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Pagans,
Albert Ayler,
Amon Düül,
Sight & Sound,
Jerry's Kids,
Scientists,
Black Flag,
Kool Moe Dee,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Robert Wyatt,
The Sisters of Mercy,
DNA,
Crispy Ambulance,
Negative Approach,
The Modern Lovers,
Ponytail,
Jerry Gold Smith,
The J.B.'s,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Severed Heads,
Tomorrow,
Zero Boys,
The Tremeloes,
The Detroit Cobras,
Arab on Radar,
Jeru the Damaja,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Pylon,
Ornette Coleman,
Lalo Schifrin,
Carl Craig,
The American Breed,
The Real Kids,
The Black Dice,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Camberwell Now,
Johnny Clarke,
Heaven 17,
Scan 7,
Niagra,
Bobby Womack,
Amon Düül II,
Andrew Hill,
Subhumans,
Icehouse,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Q and Not U,
Simply Red,
Tommy Roe,
Babytalk,
Funky Four + One,
Au Pairs,
Howard Jones,
Davy DMX,
Wolf Eyes,
Wire,
These Immortal Souls,
Monks,
KRS-One,
Country Teasers,
Groovy Waters, Groovy Waters, Groovy Waters, Groovy Waters.
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.