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 Bosnia Herzegovina and from London.
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 1966 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Taipei and Madrid.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mexico City 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 1983 at the first Bronski Beat practice in a loft in Brixton.
I was working on the theremin 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 Yusef Lateef to the disco 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 Bang on a Can All-Stars. All the underground hits.
All Gang of Four tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Interpol record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a sitar and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Drexciya record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Flamin' Groovies,
The Seeds,
Aural Exciters,
Royal Trux,
X-102,
New Age Steppers,
Robert Wyatt,
Scrapy,
Jerry Gold Smith,
Jimmy McGriff,
the Swans,
Liaisons Dangereuses,
The Fire Engines,
Excepter,
Peter & Gordon,
Dark Day,
Darondo,
Skarface,
The Buckinghams,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
the Bar-Kays,
Au Pairs,
Johnny Osbourne,
New York Dolls,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
Juan Atkins,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Amazonics,
The Busters,
The Wake,
Black Sheep,
Loose Ends,
Deadbeat,
David Axelrod,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Chris Corsano,
Amon Düül II,
Liliput,
Gang Green,
Sad Lovers and Giants,
Radio Birdman,
One Last Wish,
Mo-Dettes,
Michelle Simonal,
The Cure,
Reuben Wilson,
Parry Music,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
Lyres,
Althea and Donna,
Mary Jane Girls,
Sandy B,
Sonny Sharrock,
Con Funk Shun,
Hashim,
The Count Five,
Barry Ungar,
Morten Harket, Morten Harket, Morten Harket, Morten Harket.
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.