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 China and from Taipei.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Glasgow and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Paris 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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the harpsichord 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 Sunsets and Hearts to the crunk 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 The Chocolate Watch Band. All the underground hits.
All Nils Olav tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Warren Ellis 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 '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an organ and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Little Man record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The J.B.'s,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Pantaleimon,
One Last Wish,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
The Electric Prunes,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Ohio Players,
Roxy Music,
Howard Jones,
The Durutti Column,
Pet Shop Boys,
Fluxion,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Frankie Knuckles,
The Fortunes,
Pagans,
Bobby Sherman,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Model 500,
Scan 7,
Sad Lovers and Giants,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Wire,
Jeru the Damaja,
Crispy Ambulance,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Jerry Gold Smith,
Gang of Four,
The Standells,
Flipper,
The Black Dice,
Funky Four + One,
Yellowson,
Das Ding,
Moss Icon,
Lou Christie,
Adolescents,
Slick Rick,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Robert Wyatt,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Newcleus,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
The Residents,
Henry Cow,
Albert Ayler,
Marmalade,
Sexual Harrassment,
Jimmy McGriff,
a-ha,
Wasted Youth,
Mad Mike,
Rufus Thomas,
Con Funk Shun,
Barclay James Harvest,
Dorothy Ashby,
the Slits,
Index,
Ken Boothe,
Brass Construction,
Black Flag, Black Flag, Black Flag, Black Flag.
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.