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 Ethiopia and from Mumbai.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Soft Boys show in Cambridge.
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 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in London and Sao Paulo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Glasgow 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 1962 at the first Guess Who practice in a loft in Winnipeg.
I was working on the snare sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Neon Judgement to the funk 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 Warren Ellis. All the underground hits.
All Barbara Tucker tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Kurtis Blow record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime 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 harpsichord and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Fatback Band record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Terry Callier,
Zapp,
Flash Fearless,
R.M.O.,
Radio Birdman,
Ponytail,
Pere Ubu,
Minny Pops,
Interpol,
Avey Tare,
Ronan,
Gil Scott Heron,
The Gap Band,
Black Bananas,
Funky Four + One,
Scott Walker,
Iggy Pop,
The Associates,
Crash Course in Science,
B.T. Express,
Marmalade,
Procol Harum,
Nico,
The United States of America,
Mad Mike,
Hashim,
The Cowsills,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Yazoo,
Sandy B,
Banda Bassotti,
John Holt,
Grey Daturas,
Kerrie Biddell,
PIL,
Max Romeo,
Delta 5,
The Standells,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Black Flag,
John Foxx,
Lakeside,
New Age Steppers,
The Beau Brummels,
Mark Hollis,
Q and Not U,
Aswad,
Faust,
AZ,
James White and The Blacks,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Gichy Dan,
10cc,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
Piero Umiliani,
Lindisfarne,
The Remains,
Wally Richardson,
Chris & Cosey,
Thompson Twins, Thompson Twins, Thompson Twins, Thompson Twins.
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.