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 Korea North and from Beijing.
But I was there.
I was there in 1967.
I was there at the first Rodriguez show in Detroit.
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 1964 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Halifax and Edmonton.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Milan 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 clarinet 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 Sun City Girls to the rap 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 Silicon Teens. All the underground hits.
All Steve Hackett tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every the Germs record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and a synthesizer and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a kango's stein massive record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Surgeon,
Aural Exciters,
The Smiths,
The Real Kids,
Roxette,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Tropical Tobacco,
Lou Christie,
Nils Olav,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
The Associates,
Nico,
Sandy B,
The Pop Group,
Mo-Dettes,
In Retrospect,
The Count Five,
David Axelrod,
The Index,
Scott Walker + Sunn O))),
Soft Cell,
Sam Rivers,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Joe Smooth,
Rotary Connection,
Connie Case,
Don Cherry,
Khruangbin,
DJ Style,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Lyres,
Letta Mbulu,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Sparks,
Los Fastidios,
Davy DMX,
Yaz,
Frankie Knuckles,
Black Pus,
Kenny Larkin,
Erasure,
Throbbing Gristle,
Kayak,
Nirvana,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
Jesper Dahlbäck,
Scott Walker,
Camouflage,
Lou Reed,
Desert Stars,
Dawn Penn,
Anthony Braxton,
Delon & Dalcan,
Von Mondo,
Reuben Wilson,
a-ha,
Half Japanese,
Jeff Mills,
Neu!,
Talk Talk, Talk Talk, Talk Talk, Talk Talk.
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.