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 Yemen and from Philadelphia.
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 1967 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Houston and Edmonton.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Copenhagen 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 synthesizer 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 Ultimate Spinach to the funk kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Kenny Larkin. All the underground hits.
All The Selecter tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Ten City record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock 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 an arpeggiator and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Eric Copeland record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a sitar.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Sandy B,
Rekid,
Amon Düül,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Faraquet,
Pantaleimon,
Minor Threat,
Nik Kershaw,
Arab on Radar,
Au Pairs,
Scan 7,
Arcadia,
Tears for Fears,
The Durutti Column,
Moebius,
Marvin Gaye,
Pussy Galore,
Joyce Sims,
Alton Ellis,
Thee Headcoats,
Gang Green,
Ice-T,
The Gap Band,
Black Flag,
Stiv Bators,
The Mojo Men,
Porter Ricks,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Negative Approach,
Crime,
The Human League,
It's A Beautiful Day,
The Smoke,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Gil Scott Heron,
Nation of Ulysses,
Fatback Band,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Davy DMX,
Dorothy Ashby,
Quantec,
Todd Terry,
KRS-One,
Eddi Front,
Section 25,
Easy Going,
Basic Channel,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
Alphaville,
The Cramps,
The Pretty Things,
Tomorrow,
Harpers Bizarre,
The Smiths,
The Neon Judgement,
The American Breed,
Von Mondo,
Alison Limerick,
Monolake, Monolake, Monolake, Monolake.
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.