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 Nicaragua and from Bremen.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Josef K show in Edinburgh.
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 Lille and Manchester.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Portland 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 sitar sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Mars to the funk 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 Duran Duran. All the underground hits.
All Cal Tjader tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Names record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal disco 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 rhodes and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Y Pants record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Rites of Spring,
The Last Poets,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Toni Rubio,
B.T. Express,
Man Parrish,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
The Flesh Eaters,
The Mummies,
Cabaret Voltaire,
The Smiths,
Young Marble Giants,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Yusef Lateef,
Agent Orange,
Reagan Youth,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Deadbeat,
The Dead C,
Drexciya,
Pet Shop Boys,
L. Decosne,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Angry Samoans,
Joe Finger,
Grey Daturas,
Roxette,
John Holt,
The Divine Comedy,
Amon Düül II,
Rapeman,
Q and Not U,
Eurythmics,
Quando Quango,
Tim Buckley,
Black Moon,
Neil Young,
Bronski Beat,
Monolake,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
Rufus Thomas,
X-101,
Sun Ra,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
R.M.O.,
Fela Kuti,
The Trojans,
Porter Ricks,
The Alarm Clocks,
FM Einheit,
Cybotron,
Cheater Slicks,
Howard Jones,
Johnny Clarke,
Deakin,
Idris Muhammad,
Metal Thangz,
K-Klass,
Jeff Lynne,
Lou Reed,
Amon Düül,
Suburban Knight,
Audionom,
Index, Index, Index, Index.
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.