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 Grenada and from Woodstock.
But I was there.
I was there in 1987.
I was there at the first Nirvana show in Seattle.
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 1972.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Halifax and Spokane.
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 1979 at the first Josef K practice in a loft in Edinburgh.
I was working on the harpsichord 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 David Bowie to the grime kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Johnny Clarke. All the underground hits.
All The Dirtbombs tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Inner City record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rap 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 spring reverb and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Grauzone record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Oblivians,
Bad Manners,
Lou Christie,
Sparks,
Rufus Thomas,
Simply Red,
Sonic Youth,
Grandmaster Flash,
Prince Buster,
Electric Prunes,
The Angels of Light,
The American Breed,
The Victims,
The Gap Band,
Jacques Brel,
Alison Limerick,
Jandek,
Rapeman,
The New Christs,
Mark Hollis,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Soul Sonic Force,
Crispian St. Peters,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Laurel Aitken,
Mission of Burma,
FM Einheit,
Bluetip,
Joyce Sims,
Animal Collective,
Marcia Griffiths,
Y Pants,
The Sonics,
Ultimate Spinach,
Grauzone,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Moss Icon,
OOIOO,
48th St. Collective,
Boogie Down Productions,
X-101,
Niagra,
Darondo,
Marvin Gaye,
Suicide,
Sun Ra,
Fat Boys,
Derrick May,
Freddie Wadling,
Gabor Szabo,
Charles Mingus,
Howard Jones,
Arab on Radar,
Stockholm Monsters,
Avey Tare,
Curtis Mayfield,
The Red Krayola,
Soft Machine,
Iggy Pop,
Don Cherry, Don Cherry, Don Cherry, Don Cherry.
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.