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 Seychelles and from Philadelphia.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
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 1966 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Copenhagen and Bologna.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Toronto 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 1971 at the first Big Star practice in a loft in Memphis.
I was working on the spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Spoonie Gee to the rap kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Soul Sonic Force. All the underground hits.
All Chrome tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Q and Not U 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 '50s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a spring reverb and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bill Wells record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare 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 Slits,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Eden Ahbez,
The Velvet Underground,
Can,
Country Teasers,
Janne Schatter,
Alice Coltrane,
Skarface,
Wolf Eyes,
AZ,
KRS-One,
The Alarm Clocks,
Infiniti,
Faust,
John Holt,
Malaria!,
Crime,
The Dirtbombs,
Eric Copeland,
Cymande,
Archie Shepp,
Animal Collective,
Mars,
Alphaville,
Marine Girls,
Nirvana,
The Zeros,
The Tremeloes,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Rakim,
Traffic Nightmare,
Brass Construction,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Stereo Dub,
Sugar Minott,
Rites of Spring,
Barry Ungar,
The Gories,
Urselle,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Spoonie Gee,
The Slackers,
Cal Tjader,
Moby Grape,
Dave Gahan,
UT,
Bang On A Can,
Reagan Youth,
the Fania All-Stars,
Clear Light,
The Grass Roots,
Grauzone,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
PIL,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Wasted Youth,
kango's stein massive,
Scientists,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Spandau Ballet,
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.