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 Somalia and from Toronto.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Bowie show in Bromley.
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 1968 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Edmonton.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lagos 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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the guitar sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Bill Near to the grime kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 Aswad. All the underground hits.
All Stetsasonic tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Happenings record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime 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 clarinet and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Pantaleimon record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Monolake,
Charles Mingus,
Blake Baxter,
Gang Gang Dance,
Ludus,
Pierre Henry,
Girls At Our Best!,
the Bar-Kays,
Agitation Free,
Gerry Rafferty,
ABBA,
X-Ray Spex,
Arthur Verocai,
Pylon,
Nation of Ulysses,
Funky Four + One,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Wally Richardson,
Metal Thangz,
Banda Bassotti,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
The Neon Judgement,
Joe Finger,
Junior Murvin,
Gang Starr,
Young Marble Giants,
Basic Channel,
Tears for Fears,
The Associates,
Smog,
Wasted Youth,
Mary Jane Girls,
Delon & Dalcan,
The Kinks,
Letta Mbulu,
Qualms,
Underground Resistance,
Easy Going,
a-ha,
Sex Pistols,
Rhythm & Sound,
The Dead C,
Gang of Four,
Amon Düül II,
Mark Hollis,
Donald Byrd,
Malaria!,
Marvin Gaye,
Al Stewart,
Eric Dolphy,
D'Angelo,
Roy Ayers,
Accadde A,
Eden Ahbez,
Nik Kershaw,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
Leonard Cohen,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Soft Machine,
Don Cherry,
Joy Division, Joy Division, Joy Division, Joy Division.
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.