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 South Sudan and from Bologna.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Second Layer show in South 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 1967 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Spokane and Manchester.
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 1976 at the first Chic practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the theremin sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 Suburban Knight to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 Unrelated Segments. All the underground hits.
All Roy Ayers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Von Mondo 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an oboe and a marimba and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Tom Boy record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
the Association,
Black Sheep,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Lungfish,
cv313,
The Gap Band,
Tubeway Army,
Bauhaus,
The Dirtbombs,
Jeff Lynne,
The Five Americans,
The Martian,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
Rapeman,
The Young Rascals,
Chris & Cosey,
Bronski Beat,
Michelle Simonal,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
Interpol,
FM Einheit,
The Selecter,
Robert Wyatt,
James White and The Blacks,
Nik Kershaw,
Grauzone,
Sun Ra,
Derrick Morgan,
Franke,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Crash Course in Science,
The Move,
LL Cool J,
The Residents,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
The Red Krayola,
The Shadows of Knight,
Arcadia,
Bootsy Collins,
The Happenings,
Amon Düül II,
Monks,
Marmalade,
Soul Sonic Force,
Minny Pops,
D'Angelo,
Surgeon,
The Durutti Column,
The Neon Judgement,
Gang Gang Dance,
Grandmaster Flash,
Eric B and Rakim,
Matthew Halsall,
DJ Style,
Frankie Knuckles,
These Immortal Souls,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
The Busters,
June Days,
Fluxion,
Dual Sessions,
Newcleus,
Howard Jones, Howard Jones, Howard Jones, Howard Jones.
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.