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 Maldives and from Tehran.
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 1969 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Accra and New York.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lyon 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 marimba 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 Ralphi Rosario to the punk 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 A Certain Ratio. All the underground hits.
All The Black Dice tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every 10cc 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 '70s.
I hear you're buying a marimba and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Electric Prunes record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Juan Atkins,
Mantronix,
Ronan,
The Neon Judgement,
The Knickerbockers,
Sam Rivers,
David Bowie,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
The Move,
Mo-Dettes,
Amazonics,
Audionom,
David Axelrod,
Boogie Down Productions,
Qualms,
Animal Collective,
Piero Umiliani,
R.M.O.,
Throbbing Gristle,
The Flesh Eaters,
Nils Olav,
Pierre Henry,
Rakim,
T. Rex,
Yazoo,
Kerri Chandler,
DJ Style,
The Evens,
Donald Byrd,
John Lydon,
Black Flag,
X-102,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Brass Construction,
Dorothy Ashby,
Kas Product,
The Royal Family And The Poor,
Arcadia,
Thompson Twins,
The Mojo Men,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Wake,
The Zeros,
10cc,
Frankie Knuckles,
kango's stein massive,
Marshall Jefferson,
Popol Vuh,
DNA,
Sexual Harrassment,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Kaleidoscope,
Fugazi,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Tomorrow,
Bauhaus,
Saccharine Trust,
Man Eating Sloth,
Blossom Toes,
Accadde A,
Sarah Menescal,
Cybotron,
Notorious Big And Bone Thugs,
Carl Craig, Carl Craig, Carl Craig, Carl Craig.
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.