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 Suriname and from Manchester.
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 1967 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in London and Toronto.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Tehran 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 1973 at the first Television practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 Ajijia Myrayebe to the rap kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 Be Bop Deluxe. All the underground hits.
All X-Ray Spex tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Eric B and Rakim 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Nils Olav record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Electric Prunes,
Make Up,
Wire,
Skarface,
Pantaleimon,
The Modern Lovers,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
X-102,
Mandrill,
Hardrive,
The United States of America,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
The Stooges,
Al Stewart,
Scratch Acid,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Cameo,
The Evens,
Idris Muhammad,
Juan Atkins,
Delta 5,
The Searchers,
Alton Ellis,
the Normal,
Alphaville,
L. Decosne,
Inner City,
Jacob Miller,
Derrick Morgan,
June of 44,
The Doors,
Jeff Mills,
Marvin Gaye,
Mars,
Sällskapet,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Cal Tjader,
Eurythmics,
Peter and Kerry,
Ludus,
Talk Talk,
Crash Course in Science,
Gregory Isaacs,
Accadde A,
Niagra,
Eddi Front,
The Remains,
Symarip,
Althea and Donna,
Motorama,
Dual Sessions,
Gerry Rafferty,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
A Certain Ratio,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
Patti Smith,
Cluster,
Deepchord,
The Moleskins,
Michelle Simonal,
Magazine, Magazine, Magazine, Magazine.
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.