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 Fiji and from Columbus.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Neu! show in Düsseldorf.
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 1972.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lille and London.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manchester 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 spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Johnny Clarke to the crunk 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 Jimmy McGriff. All the underground hits.
All D'Angelo tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Dead Boys record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz 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 rhodes and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Cowsills record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a guitar.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Human League,
Tears for Fears,
Suicide,
Saccharine Trust,
Tubeway Army,
John Cale,
The Blues Magoos,
Lakeside,
Pere Ubu,
Negative Approach,
John Lydon,
Throbbing Gristle,
The United States of America,
Joensuu 1685,
The Raincoats,
Scott Walker,
Agent Orange,
Harpers Bizarre,
Pagans,
Blake Baxter,
DJ Sneak,
Country Joe & The Fish,
R.M.O.,
Chris Corsano,
Main Source,
Livin' Joy,
Scratch Acid,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Lalann,
Andrew Hill,
Brothers Johnson,
Chrome,
Sex Pistols,
Ultimate Spinach,
The Tremeloes,
The Offenders,
Shuggie Otis,
Marcia Griffiths,
Guru Guru,
Monolake,
the Human League,
Kas Product,
Young Marble Giants,
The Monks,
E-Dancer,
The Real Kids,
Whodini,
Franke,
Kenny Larkin,
Unrelated Segments,
The Black Dice,
Delta 5,
Lou Christie,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Aural Exciters,
Dorothy Ashby,
DJ Style,
Lyres,
Fatback Band,
The Electric Prunes,
The Happenings,
James Chance & The Contortions,
X-101, X-101, X-101, X-101.
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.