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 Australia and from Toronto.
But I was there.
I was there in 1977.
I was there at the first Mistral show in Amsterdam.
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 1966 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Bremen.
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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the clarinet 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 New Age Steppers to the jazz kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Bootsy's Rubber Band. All the underground hits.
All Major Organ And The Adding Machine tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a harpsichord and a sitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Black Sheep record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The American Breed,
Lebanon Hanover,
Bronski Beat,
CMW,
Black Bananas,
Spoonie Gee,
The Five Americans,
Juan Atkins,
X-Ray Spex,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Sandy B,
Fad Gadget,
Chrome,
Sarah Menescal,
Jacob Miller,
Glambeats Corp.,
Royal Trux,
Howard Jones,
The Flesh Eaters,
Barclay James Harvest,
The Raincoats,
Mary Jane Girls,
Bobby Hutcherson,
Matthew Bourne,
Scrapy,
Lee Hazlewood,
Gang Starr,
Boredoms,
Anakelly,
Youth Brigade,
Eurythmics,
Marvin Gaye,
John Lydon,
Surgeon,
Massinfluence,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Talk Talk,
the Swans,
Graham Central Station,
Bob Dylan,
Excepter,
Joe Finger,
Make Up,
H. Thieme,
Rekid,
Depeche Mode,
Infiniti,
The Cure,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Swans,
Animal Collective,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Pet Shop Boys,
Eric Dolphy,
Eddi Front,
The Durutti Column,
Brass Construction,
The Young Rascals,
Absolute Body Control,
Kerrie Biddell,
John Coltrane,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Trumans Water, Trumans Water, Trumans Water, Trumans Water.
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.