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 Lesotho and from Portland.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
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 1962 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lille and Tokyo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manchester 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 Chic practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the marimba sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie 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 Skaos to the rap kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 Yellowson. All the underground hits.
All Matthew Halsall tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Marcia Griffiths record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Neon Judgement record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your organ and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought an organ.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
Cecil Taylor,
Duran Duran,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Marshall Jefferson,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Lou Reed,
David McCallum,
Yellowson,
Radiohead,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
PIL,
Guru Guru,
The Flesh Eaters,
Livin' Joy,
Kerrie Biddell,
Peter & Gordon,
Camouflage,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
The Gories,
Q and Not U,
Bizarre Inc.,
Flash Fearless,
Drexciya,
Yaz,
The Residents,
Minutemen,
Zero Boys,
Gichy Dan,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Jacob Miller,
Nils Olav,
Yazoo,
Shuggie Otis,
LL Cool J,
The Victims,
Organ,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Roger Hodgson,
Bad Manners,
Lebanon Hanover,
Half Japanese,
Arthur Verocai,
Crispian St. Peters,
Howard Jones,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
The Sisters of Mercy,
Sugar Minott,
Franke,
Delta 5,
Audionom,
Moby Grape,
Scrapy,
FM Einheit,
Nik Kershaw,
Talk Talk,
Scott Walker,
The Human League,
The Standells,
Barbara Tucker,
Scientists,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
The Smiths, The Smiths, The Smiths, The Smiths.
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.