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 Denmark and from Edmonton.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Buzzcocks show in Bolton.
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 1962 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in New York and Bremen.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manila 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 1983 at the first Art of Noise practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the clarinet 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 Shuggie Otis to the electroclash kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 The Dave Clark Five. All the underground hits.
All Hashim tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Sex Pistols record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk 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 theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Chocolate Watch Band record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a mellotron.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Five Americans,
Howard Jones,
Moebius,
The Vogues,
the Fania All-Stars,
The United States of America,
Jerry's Kids,
Dead Boys,
Henry Cow,
The Fortunes,
Archie Shepp,
Roxy Music,
Sister Nancy,
Throbbing Gristle,
The Beau Brummels,
PIL,
Matthew Halsall,
The Gladiators,
Radiohead,
Anakelly,
Byron Stingily,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Barbara Tucker,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
John Coltrane,
The Names,
The Busters,
Amon Düül,
Josef K,
Accadde A,
Shuggie Otis,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Siglo XX,
Audionom,
Roxette,
Panda Bear,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Sonny Sharrock,
Bill Near,
Nas,
Johnny Osbourne,
Black Pus,
John Cale,
John Foxx,
Gil Scott Heron,
Wings,
Procol Harum,
Rod Modell,
Sarah Menescal,
The Trojans,
Fad Gadget,
Flipper,
Cymande,
Nirvana,
Public Image Ltd.,
Black Bananas,
Aaron Thompson,
Q and Not U,
Newcleus,
This Heat,
Charles Mingus, Charles Mingus, Charles Mingus, Charles Mingus.
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.