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 St Lucia and from Mexico City.
But I was there.
I was there in 1984.
I was there at the first Arcadia show in London.
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 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Hong Kong and Stockholm.
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 snare 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 Gang Gang Dance to the disco 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 Ornette Coleman. All the underground hits.
All Bootsy Collins tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every X-102 record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance 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 an arpeggiator and a 808 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 rhodes and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a rhodes.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Litter,
Pagans,
The Index,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
New Order,
Rhythm & Sound,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
Monks,
Kas Product,
The Gladiators,
Zapp,
Rapeman,
Faust,
The Sound,
The Red Krayola,
ABBA,
Freddie Wadling,
Grandmaster Flash,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
The Wake,
Spoonie Gee,
Hashim,
Tomorrow,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Harpers Bizarre,
The Trojans,
Fela Kuti,
Warsaw,
The Dave Clark Five,
Soulsonic Force,
One Last Wish,
K-Klass,
Fluxion,
Half Japanese,
Rites of Spring,
Gregory Isaacs,
The Move,
The Vogues,
Sonic Youth,
Main Source,
Sparks,
Brothers Johnson,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Radiohead,
Hardrive,
Susan Cadogan,
Duran Duran,
Boredoms,
Television Personalities,
Throbbing Gristle,
Au Pairs,
Loose Ends,
Fear,
Young Marble Giants,
Quando Quango,
La Düsseldorf,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Camouflage,
Stockholm Monsters,
Marine Girls,
LL Cool J,
The Pop Group,
Terrestrial Tones, Terrestrial Tones, Terrestrial Tones, Terrestrial Tones.
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.