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 Kazakhstan and from Portland.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Feelies show in Haledon.
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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Seoul and Portland.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mumbai 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 Soft Boys practice in a loft in Cambridge.
I was working on the clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 X-Ray Spex to the jazz kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 Scratch Acid. All the underground hits.
All Manfred Mann's Earth Band tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Eyeless In Gaza record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal techno hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a sitar and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Dorothy Ashby record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Jerry's Kids,
The Trojans,
Dorothy Ashby,
China Crisis,
The Leaves,
Negative Approach,
The Zeros,
Albert Ayler,
Notorious BIG live in Amsterdam,
10cc,
Sandy B,
Con Funk Shun,
Johnny Osbourne,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
New Age Steppers,
Radiopuhelimet,
Cameo,
Marvin Gaye,
Funkadelic,
Faust,
The Walker Brothers,
Tommy Roe,
Pharoah Sanders,
Dark Day,
Hasil Adkins,
The Cowsills,
The United States of America,
Rotary Connection,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Gichy Dan,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
Urselle,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Eric Copeland,
Andrew Hill,
Gang of Four,
DJ Style,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Cal Tjader,
The Searchers,
June of 44,
Mantronix,
Malaria!,
the Fania All-Stars,
Royal Trux,
Roxy Music,
The Fall,
Susan Cadogan,
Stetsasonic,
The Evens,
B.T. Express,
Deepchord,
The Busters,
Y Pants,
Buzzcocks,
OOIOO,
Little Man,
Tears for Fears,
Quantec,
KRS-One,
Black Moon,
Blancmange, Blancmange, Blancmange, Blancmange.
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.