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 Brazil and from Philadelphia.
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 1961 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in London and Glasgow.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Johannesburg 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 harpsichord 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 Bootsy's Rubber Band to the rock kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Fifty Foot Hose. All the underground hits.
All Hoover tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Lungfish record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Unrelated Segments 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?
L. Decosne,
Quantec,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Roxy Music,
Dave Gahan,
Cheater Slicks,
The Sonics,
Marc Almond,
Big Daddy Kane,
Todd Rundgren,
Colin Newman,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Agent Orange,
New York Dolls,
Morten Harket,
Technova,
Joensuu 1685,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Franke,
Q and Not U,
A Certain Ratio,
The Music Machine,
Frankie Knuckles,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
The Black Dice,
Sister Nancy,
Fatback Band,
the Sonics,
Babytalk,
Gang of Four,
Prince Buster,
Josef K,
The Leaves,
Zero Boys,
The Dead C,
Animal Collective,
The Busters,
a-ha,
The Blues Magoos,
Metal Thangz,
Thee Headcoats,
Patti Smith,
Fela Kuti,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Roy Ayers,
ABC,
Pere Ubu,
The Victims,
Lou Reed,
Blossom Toes,
The Fall,
Radio Birdman,
Joe Smooth,
These Immortal Souls,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Lungfish,
Liliput,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Jacob Miller,
Barbara Tucker,
Accadde A,
Bluetip, Bluetip, Bluetip, Bluetip.
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.