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 Swaziland and from Lagos.
But I was there.
I was there in 1978.
I was there at the first Visage show in London.
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 1966 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Lille.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Cairo 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 spring reverb 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 One Last Wish to the punk kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 The Fortunes. All the underground hits.
All Bob Dylan tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Maleditus Sound record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a linndrum and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a the Sonics record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Warsaw,
Robert Wyatt,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
The Sound,
The Shadows of Knight,
Dennis Brown,
Neu!,
Magma,
Livin' Joy,
Motorama,
the Germs,
The Mighty Diamonds,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
Gerry Rafferty,
Eve St. Jones,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Pet Shop Boys,
Lebanon Hanover,
Derrick Morgan,
JFA,
Hardrive,
Fad Gadget,
The Techniques,
Mandrill,
The Detroit Cobras,
The J.B.'s,
Fear,
Arthur Verocai,
The Black Dice,
Kerrie Biddell,
The Searchers,
Prince Buster,
Index,
Niagra,
Scion,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
The Fire Engines,
Smog,
Faust,
Pharoah Sanders,
Joe Smooth,
Moby Grape,
Thompson Twins,
Ponytail,
Morten Harket,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Leonard Cohen,
Kerri Chandler,
Inner City,
The Real Kids,
The Monks,
Yusef Lateef,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Jeru the Damaja,
Marmalade,
Minor Threat,
Quantec,
The Blackbyrds,
Buzzcocks,
Television Personalities,
Bauhaus, Bauhaus, Bauhaus, Bauhaus.
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.