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 Equatorial Guinea and from Seoul.
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 1965 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lyon and Accra.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mumbai 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 oboe 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 The Doors to the rap kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 Chris Corsano. All the underground hits.
All Fad Gadget tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Gregory Isaacs 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 '80s.
I hear you're buying a sitar and a spring reverb and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Gregory Isaacs record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a 808.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Rakim,
Pole,
Agitation Free,
Tropical Tobacco,
Yellowson,
Eurythmics,
Public Image Ltd.,
Bill Near,
Negative Approach,
Gang of Four,
The Shadows of Knight,
Agent Orange,
Underground Resistance,
Hashim,
Cheater Slicks,
The Names,
Jawbox,
Pussy Galore,
Black Flag,
The Buckinghams,
Sister Nancy,
Bang On A Can,
LL Cool J,
The Victims,
Piero Umiliani,
a-ha,
The Knickerbockers,
Terror Squad Feat. Camron,
Boogie Down Productions,
Matthew Bourne,
The Doobie Brothers,
Lee Hazlewood,
A Certain Ratio,
Rosa Yemen,
Gabor Szabo,
Can,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
David McCallum,
The Moody Blues,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Franke,
David Axelrod,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Sparks,
Stereo Dub,
Minnie Riperton,
Ronan,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
Clear Light,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Bush Tetras,
Isaac Hayes,
Bob Dylan,
The Grass Roots,
Oblivians,
Unwound,
Lou Reed,
Anakelly,
Rufus Thomas,
Connie Case, Connie Case, Connie Case, Connie Case.
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.