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 South Africa and from Accra.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Second Layer show in South 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 1969 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Paris and Manila.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Philadelphia 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 1975 at the first Throbbing Gristle practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the clarinet 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 The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band to the disco 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 Marmalade. All the underground hits.
All Eric B and Rakim tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Smog record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk 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 guitar and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Lou Reed & John Cale record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a chamberlin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
EPMD,
The Blues Magoos,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Easy Going,
The Gun Club,
Grandmaster Flash,
Soul II Soul,
Soft Cell,
Duran Duran,
John Coltrane,
MDC,
Livin' Joy,
Matthew Bourne,
Eve St. Jones,
Black Pus,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Aswad,
Magazine,
The Pop Group,
The Last Poets,
the Association,
Wasted Youth,
Amon Düül,
The Evens,
Clear Light,
The Blackbyrds,
Nils Olav,
Derrick May,
Trumans Water,
Skriet,
Los Fastidios,
Sister Nancy,
LL Cool J,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
The Dave Clark Five,
Groovy Waters,
Bang On A Can,
The Detroit Cobras,
Roxette,
the Sonics,
Piero Umiliani,
New Order,
L. Decosne,
Lou Reed,
The Zeros,
Freddie Wadling,
Letta Mbulu,
Funky Four + One,
Japan,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Grauzone,
The Beau Brummels,
Andrew Hill,
June of 44,
Pet Shop Boys,
Mad Mike,
Accadde A,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282.
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.