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 Maldives and from Taipei.
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 1962 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Accra and Salvador.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Houston 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 1967 at the first Rodriguez practice in a loft in Detroit.
I was working on the güiro 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 Jacob Miller to the jazz kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 Arcadia. All the underground hits.
All 8 Eyed Spy tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Vladislav Delay record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal techno 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 an oboe and a sitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Popol Vuh record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought an organ.
I hear that you and your band have sold your organ and bought a sitar.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Offenders,
The Count Five,
Jacques Brel,
Stereo Dub,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
The Saints,
Gang of Four,
Rapeman,
The Young Rascals,
Rites of Spring,
Ultimate Spinach,
UT,
The Names,
The Dead C,
Country Teasers,
Soulsonic Force,
Livin' Joy,
Supertramp,
Wire,
Half Japanese,
Television,
Agitation Free,
Fatback Band,
Graham Central Station,
Neil Young,
Man Parrish,
Erasure,
X-101,
The Cowsills,
Minny Pops,
Jandek,
Johnny Clarke,
Schoolly D,
Howard Jones,
The Moody Blues,
Yellowson,
Model 500,
Soft Machine,
Malaria!,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Bobby Sherman,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
Hashim,
Sex Pistols,
Panda Bear,
Amazonics,
The Searchers,
Newcleus,
Roy Ayers,
Eve St. Jones,
Rotary Connection,
Rod Modell,
Alton Ellis,
the Germs,
Yazoo,
Shoche,
Sarah Menescal,
Davy DMX,
The Durutti Column,
Cameo,
T. Rex,
Maurizio,
In Retrospect,
Sonic Youth, Sonic Youth, Sonic Youth, Sonic Youth.
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.