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 Afghanistan and from Spokane.
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 1960 to 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lagos and Mumbai.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school London 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 1979 at the first Josef K practice in a loft in Edinburgh.
I was working on the marimba sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band to the rap kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Moleskins. All the underground hits.
All 48th St. Collective tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Ultra Naté record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal disco hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bill Near record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Todd Rundgren,
the Sonics,
Man Parrish,
Niagra,
Tomorrow,
Spandau Ballet,
Soft Cell,
The Buckinghams,
Little Man,
Girls At Our Best!,
Quantec,
Kayak,
Dual Sessions,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Donald Byrd,
Faraquet,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
The New Christs,
Dave Gahan,
Interpol,
June of 44,
Big Daddy Kane,
The Knickerbockers,
Jeru the Damaja,
Chrome,
Skaos,
Minutemen,
Groovy Waters,
The Searchers,
Reuben Wilson,
Adolescents,
Crispian St. Peters,
Sticky Fingaz feat. Raekwon,
Surgeon,
The Neon Judgement,
Dark Day,
Chris & Cosey,
Sarah Menescal,
the Germs,
London Community Gospel Choir,
F. McDonald,
Yazoo,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Negative Approach,
Blancmange,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Liaisons Dangereuses,
Outsiders,
Don Cherry,
Bootsy Collins,
The Fuzztones,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Davy DMX,
The Red Krayola,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
Darondo,
Excepter,
Basic Channel,
Fluxion,
The Happenings,
The Tremeloes,
The Fugs, The Fugs, The Fugs, The Fugs.
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.