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 Belarus and from Johannesburg.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Buzzcocks show in Bolton.
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 1960 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Spokane.
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 1976 at the first Wire practice in a loft in Watford.
I was working on the güiro sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 Smoke to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Troubador.
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 CMW. All the underground hits.
All Grandmaster Flash tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Chrome record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a linndrum and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Star Department record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Selecter,
Moss Icon,
Sun Ra,
Johnny Clarke,
The Moody Blues,
The Star Department,
The Remains,
Half Japanese,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Warren Ellis,
Pantaleimon,
Isaac Hayes,
Oblivians,
Bluetip,
EPMD,
Ultravox,
Roger Hodgson,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
Connie Case,
The Pretty Things,
Albert Ayler,
Pere Ubu,
Guru Guru,
Zapp,
Lindisfarne,
Magazine,
The Pop Group,
Country Teasers,
Massinfluence,
Agitation Free,
Bad Manners,
Aaron Thompson,
Hasil Adkins,
Reagan Youth,
Pulsallama,
Stetsasonic,
Cheater Slicks,
Kevin Saunderson,
Los Fastidios,
Jeff Lynne,
The Grass Roots,
The Music Machine,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
June of 44,
The Vogues,
a-ha,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Faraquet,
Maurizio,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Absolute Body Control,
Icehouse,
Terrestrial Tones,
Fugazi,
Lou Reed,
Aural Exciters,
Ponytail,
Sandy B,
Stockholm Monsters,
Supertramp,
Mantronix,
Banda Bassotti, Banda Bassotti, Banda Bassotti, Banda Bassotti.
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.