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 Gambia and from Lagos.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Art of Noise 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 1969 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Portland and Sao Paulo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Portland 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 1987 at the first Nirvana practice in a loft in Seattle.
I was working on the oboe 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 Black Bananas to the techno kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 Brick. All the underground hits.
All Albert Ayler tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Spoonie Gee record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and an arpeggiator 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 mellotron and bought a harpsichord.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Khruangbin,
Marine Girls,
Suicide,
Adolescents,
Shoche,
Glambeats Corp.,
Johnny Clarke,
The Offenders,
DJ Sneak,
Donald Byrd,
Anthony Braxton,
The Monks,
Black Flag,
AZ,
London Community Gospel Choir,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
A Certain Ratio,
Guru Guru,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Supertramp,
Ken Boothe,
Liliput,
Livin' Joy,
Main Source,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Deadbeat,
Röyhkä ja Rättö ja Lehtisalo,
The Dave Clark Five,
Moss Icon,
Visage,
Massinfluence,
Leonard Cohen,
Sticky Fingaz feat. Raekwon,
The Doors,
Symarip,
Tropical Tobacco,
Aswad,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
CMW,
Lebanon Hanover,
Arthur Verocai,
Index,
Youth Brigade,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
Bob Dylan,
The Star Department,
Q and Not U,
Royal Trux,
Ornette Coleman,
The Young Rascals,
Ronan,
Harmonia,
Andrew Hill,
The Vogues,
Amon Düül,
The Skatalites,
Colin Newman,
H. Thieme,
Siouxsie and the Banshees,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
E-Dancer,
OOIOO, OOIOO, OOIOO, OOIOO.
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.