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 Romania and from Lagos.
But I was there.
I was there in 1984.
I was there at the first Arcadia show in London.
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 1969 to 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Toronto and Accra.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Bologna 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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the spring reverb 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 Fuzztones to the grime 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 Country Joe & The Fish. All the underground hits.
All Neil Young & Crazy Horse tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Curtis Mayfield record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal techno hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a linndrum and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Outsiders record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Swans,
La Düsseldorf,
A Certain Ratio,
Bobby Byrd,
Das Ding,
The Techniques,
Faraquet,
The Selecter,
Eric Copeland,
The Wake,
Maleditus Sound,
Kas Product,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Hasil Adkins,
Stockholm Monsters,
The Move,
This Heat,
Dual Sessions,
Urselle,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Maurizio,
Saccharine Trust,
Bob Dylan,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Soft Cell,
Intrusion,
The Modern Lovers,
Robert Wyatt,
David Bowie,
Jawbox,
Smog,
Scientists,
Joe Smooth,
Gang Starr,
Altered Images,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Harry Pussy,
The Divine Comedy,
Jerry's Kids,
One Last Wish,
Ultimate Spinach,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
X-101,
Reuben Wilson,
Rosa Yemen,
Grauzone,
Donald Byrd,
Big Daddy Kane,
Outsiders,
The Young Rascals,
T. Rex,
Masters at Work,
the Normal,
The Leaves,
Japan,
Mantronix,
Cecil Taylor,
EPMD,
Newcleus,
Aswad,
Jeru the Damaja, Jeru the Damaja, Jeru the Damaja, Jeru the Damaja.
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.