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 Tonga and from Portland.
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 1961 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Calgary and Houston.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Madrid 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 1979 at the first Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the güiro sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Doobie Brothers to the rock kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 Spoonie Gee. All the underground hits.
All The Skatalites tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Wolf Eyes record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Pretty Things record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Absolute Body Control,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
the Normal,
The Velvet Underground,
Public Image Ltd.,
Niagra,
AZ,
New York Dolls,
Public Enemy,
EPMD,
The Offenders,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Roger Hodgson,
Kings Of Tomorrow,
Cymande,
Pylon,
Adolescents,
Gang Gang Dance,
Bobby Womack,
Bootsy Collins,
The Human League,
Jeff Lynne,
Television Personalities,
Sonic Youth,
Notorious Big And Bone Thugs,
Visage,
Swans,
Harpers Bizarre,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Fear,
Shoche,
the Swans,
The Mummies,
Warren Ellis,
China Crisis,
The Blackbyrds,
Jeru the Damaja,
The Monks,
Soul II Soul,
Au Pairs,
Clear Light,
Thompson Twins,
Monks,
Animal Collective,
Radiopuhelimet,
Terry Callier,
Minnie Riperton,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Alarm Clocks,
Isaac Hayes,
Albert Ayler,
Mars,
the Soft Cell,
Neil Young,
Todd Terry,
T.S.O.L.,
Soft Cell,
Delta 5,
Kaleidoscope,
Vainqueur,
The Cramps,
Max Romeo,
Gabor Szabo, Gabor Szabo, Gabor Szabo, Gabor Szabo.
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.