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 Azerbaijan and from Manila.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Halifax and Johannesburg.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lagos 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 1979 at the first Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the snare sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Beau Brummels to the disco 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 Amon Düül II. All the underground hits.
All Symarip tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Soft Cell record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Rakim record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Mighty Diamonds,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Cameo,
Bobby Sherman,
Gastr Del Sol,
Gang of Four,
The Raincoats,
Severed Heads,
the Fania All-Stars,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Arthur Verocai,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Lee Hazlewood,
Parry Music,
Dual Sessions,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Freddie Wadling,
Sex Pistols,
cv313,
The J.B.'s,
Skarface,
Colin Newman,
E-Dancer,
Kevin Saunderson,
The Barracudas,
Joy Division,
The Index,
Monolake,
Reuben Wilson,
The Vogues,
Erykah Badu,
Anthony Braxton,
The Golliwogs,
Massinfluence,
MC5,
Prince Buster,
10cc,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Delta 5,
Blake Baxter,
Drive Like Jehu,
Crispy Ambulance,
The Residents,
Pantaleimon,
Rosa Yemen,
Tropical Tobacco,
Kurtis Blow,
Barrington Levy,
Alice Coltrane,
Alton Ellis,
Cal Tjader,
the Sonics,
Easy Going,
Maurizio,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Minor Threat,
Bauhaus,
Can,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
Jandek,
Matthew Halsall,
Q65, Q65, Q65, Q65.
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.