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 Vanuatu and from Lagos.
But I was there.
I was there in 1965.
I was there at the first Beefheart show in Lancaster.
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 1964 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Taipei and Paris.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Woodstock 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 harpsichord sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 Alphaville to the grunge 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 Popol Vuh. All the underground hits.
All The Alarm Clocks tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Moleskins record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk 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 guitar and a sitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Howard Jones record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a 808.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Be Bop Deluxe,
T. Rex,
Crispy Ambulance,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
The Sonics,
Dawn Penn,
The Blackbyrds,
Subhumans,
Andrew Hill,
Bush Tetras,
Sarah Menescal,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Velvet Underground,
Yazoo,
Radio Birdman,
Sun City Girls,
The Leaves,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Agitation Free,
Eden Ahbez,
Wasted Youth,
Nas,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Pharoah Sanders,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
Ash Ra Tempel,
F. McDonald,
Sly & The Family Stone,
The New Christs,
Roy Ayers,
The Modern Lovers,
Marvin Gaye,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
Flamin' Groovies,
Ludus,
Bill Wells,
K-Klass,
Mantronix,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Babytalk,
Q and Not U,
Marcia Griffiths,
Slave,
Neu!,
Sticky Fingaz feat. Raekwon,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Young Marble Giants,
Adolescents,
Aaron Thompson,
Cal Tjader,
Fela Kuti,
Chris Corsano,
Eli Mardock,
Wally Richardson,
The Beau Brummels,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Colin Newman, Colin Newman, Colin Newman, Colin Newman.
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.