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 Malta and from Edmonton.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Art of Noise 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 1965 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Halifax and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Beijing 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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the güiro sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen 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 Larry & the Blue Notes to the punk 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 Mark Hollis. All the underground hits.
All Dave Gahan tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Funky Four + One record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Rakim record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
DNA,
Tim Buckley,
Godley & Creme,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Zero Boys,
The Star Department,
Infiniti,
Soft Cell,
Kurtis Blow,
Crash Course in Science,
Aaron Thompson,
Lungfish,
Magazine,
The Pop Group,
Archie Shepp,
The Last Poets,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Pet Shop Boys,
Deakin,
Sarah Menescal,
Circle Jerks,
Camberwell Now,
Angry Samoans,
Chris & Cosey,
Robert Wyatt,
Nas,
the Normal,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Schoolly D,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Interpol,
Gang Green,
It's A Beautiful Day,
FM Einheit,
Joe Smooth,
Colin Newman,
Dark Day,
Minnie Riperton,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Gil Scott Heron,
Rakim,
Kas Product,
Juan Atkins,
X-101,
The Index,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Sixth Finger,
Man Parrish,
Scrapy,
The Pretty Things,
Donald Byrd,
Public Enemy,
Roxette,
The American Breed,
Aloha Tigers,
Gregory Isaacs,
Marmalade,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Jeff Mills,
Faraquet, Faraquet, Faraquet, Faraquet.
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.