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 Ecuador and from Columbus.
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 1962 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Spokane and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Edmonton 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 1983 at the first Art of Noise practice in a loft in London.
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 Judy Mowatt to the electroclash kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Essential Logic. All the underground hits.
All Max Romeo tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Jacob Miller record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Monks record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a marimba.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Dave Clark Five,
A Certain Ratio,
T.S.O.L.,
Leonard Cohen,
Alphaville,
The American Breed,
Oblivians,
Ponytail,
Ultimate Spinach,
Lebanon Hanover,
Moby Grape,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Isaac Hayes,
Underground Resistance,
Qualms,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Lalo Schifrin,
The Neon Judgement,
Cameo,
June of 44,
The Invisible,
The Offenders,
Sparks,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Brothers Johnson,
Barry Ungar,
The Pretty Things,
Erykah Badu,
The J.B.'s,
Drive Like Jehu,
Guru Guru,
Flamin' Groovies,
Lower 48,
Chris & Cosey,
Young Marble Giants,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Eve St. Jones,
Archie Shepp,
David McCallum,
Joensuu 1685,
Funkadelic,
Bobby Womack,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Jeff Mills,
Rufus Thomas,
Khruangbin,
Sam Rivers,
Suicide,
Maurizio,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Surgeon,
Bill Near,
Sun Ra,
Pet Shop Boys,
Pulsallama,
Scientists,
Main Source,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Barbara Tucker,
Quantec,
The Selecter,
X-Ray Spex, X-Ray Spex, X-Ray Spex, X-Ray Spex.
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.