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 Argentina and from Lagos.
But I was there.
I was there in 1975.
I was there at the first Ubu show in Cleveland.
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 1972.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Calgary and Mumbai.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school London 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 marimba sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 Cal Tjader to the rock 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 Mad Mike. All the underground hits.
All the Association tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Harpers Bizarre record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '90s.
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 Joey Negro record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a marimba.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Von Mondo,
Minutemen,
Sound Behaviour,
Chrome,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Jandek,
Grandmaster Flash,
Lower 48,
Moby Grape,
The Sonics,
The Birthday Party,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Girls At Our Best!,
June of 44,
Amazonics,
Isaac Hayes,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Q and Not U,
Silicon Teens,
Pere Ubu,
Drexciya,
The Blackbyrds,
The Count Five,
the Sonics,
Radiohead,
The Skatalites,
Morten Harket,
Dorothy Ashby,
Quadrant,
Prince Buster,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Alison Limerick,
The Seeds,
The Cramps,
Interpol,
Spoonie Gee,
The Fall,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Lightning Bolt,
Scott Walker + Sunn O))),
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
Sexual Harrassment,
Carl Craig,
The Fugs,
Flash Fearless,
Ronan,
Cymande,
The Evens,
The Smiths,
Jerry's Kids,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Bluetip,
Lalann,
Skriet,
The Move,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Negative Approach,
Kurtis Blow,
48th St. Collective,
The Dave Clark Five, The Dave Clark Five, The Dave Clark Five, The Dave Clark Five.
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.