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 Vietnam and from New York.
But I was there.
I was there in 1975.
I was there at the first Ubu show in Cleveland.
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 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Tehran and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manila 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 1983 at the first Lewis practice in a loft in Vancouver.
I was working on the spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Neil Young & Crazy Horse to the jazz kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 Thee Headcoats. All the underground hits.
All Funky Four + One tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Juan Atkins record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bill Near record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Cluster,
The Monochrome Set,
The Slits,
The Sisters of Mercy,
Spoonie Gee,
Lakeside,
Negative Approach,
Bronski Beat,
Shuggie Otis,
Theoretical Girls,
Rotary Connection,
Grandmaster Flash,
Magazine,
Leonard Cohen,
Von Mondo,
The Durutti Column,
Newcleus,
Kerri Chandler,
Malaria!,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
Eric Copeland,
The Velvet Underground,
Wolf Eyes,
The Smiths,
Ultimate Spinach,
The Trojans,
Chrome,
The Detroit Cobras,
Livin' Joy,
Sixth Finger,
Black Flag,
Matthew Bourne,
Icehouse,
Connie Case,
The Doors,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Gang Green,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Lower 48,
Jacques Brel,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Sight & Sound,
Fatback Band,
Gerry Rafferty,
Nas,
Blake Baxter,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Radio Birdman,
Kevin Saunderson,
John Lydon,
T.S.O.L.,
Cecil Taylor,
Quadrant,
Technova,
Peter and Kerry,
Sticky Fingaz feat. Raekwon,
the Slits,
The Golliwogs,
The Doobie Brothers,
Grauzone,
Half Japanese,
MDC,
F. McDonald,
Porter Ricks, Porter Ricks, Porter Ricks, Porter Ricks.
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.