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 Finland and from Glasgow.
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 1964 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mexico City and Paris.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Accra 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 guitar sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Depeche Mode to the electroclash kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Das Ding. All the underground hits.
All Schoolly D tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Roxy Music 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?
Donny Hathaway,
Quantec,
Quando Quango,
Jeff Mills,
Cal Tjader,
Scan 7,
Scientists,
These Immortal Souls,
Janne Schatter,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
The Busters,
the Sonics,
KRS-One,
F. McDonald,
Drexciya,
The Alarm Clocks,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
The Evens,
The Zeros,
Cluster,
Arthur Verocai,
Nico,
Amon Düül,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Magazine,
The Divine Comedy,
Agitation Free,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Barrington Levy,
The Men They Couldn't Hang,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Jerry's Kids,
Pylon,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
The United States of America,
Chris Corsano,
Swans,
Grey Daturas,
Sarah Menescal,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Unwound,
Loose Ends,
Terry Callier,
Bizarre Inc.,
Andrew Hill,
Dennis Brown,
La Düsseldorf,
Dawn Penn,
Warren Ellis,
Crime,
The Star Department,
Jacques Brel,
Lebanon Hanover,
D'Angelo,
Moss Icon,
Harmonia,
Maurizio,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Rotary Connection,
Terrestrial Tones,
Absolute Body Control, Absolute Body Control, Absolute Body Control, Absolute Body Control.
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.