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 Taiwan and from Hong Kong.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Can show in Cologne.
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 1965 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Houston and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Delhi 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 1973 at the first Television practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the guitar 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 Jimmy McGriff to the rap 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 Bang on a Can All-Stars. All the underground hits.
All Robert Hood tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Black Pus record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock 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 snare and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Donald Byrd record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Beau Brummels,
Faust,
the Fania All-Stars,
Pagans,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Arthur Verocai,
Sparks,
Funky Four + One,
The New Christs,
The Stooges,
Newcleus,
The Walker Brothers,
Kevin Saunderson,
Crash Course in Science,
Deepchord,
Chrome,
FM Einheit,
Rites of Spring,
Tom Boy,
Suburban Knight,
Roxette,
PIL,
Reuben Wilson,
Johnny Osbourne,
The Divine Comedy,
the Slits,
Flash Fearless,
Niagra,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Marcia Griffiths,
Porter Ricks,
Flipper,
Basic Channel,
Metal Thangz,
Glenn Branca,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Deadbeat,
Soft Cell,
Lucky Dragons,
MDC,
Kenny Larkin,
Rod Modell,
Visage,
The Techniques,
Index,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Eric Dolphy,
Matthew Halsall,
Heaven 17,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Lightning Bolt,
The Seeds,
Alice Coltrane,
Harry Pussy,
Bobby Hutcherson,
Sonic Youth,
Marine Girls,
Davy DMX,
Siglo XX,
Man Parrish,
Wire, Wire, Wire, Wire.
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.