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 Lebanon and from Hong Kong.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Lewis show in Vancouver.
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 1963 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in London and Lille.
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 arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Heaven 17 to the dance kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 MDC. All the underground hits.
All Rakim tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Carl Craig 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 '80s.
I hear you're buying a theremin and a sitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Minor Threat record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a chamberlin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Rod Modell,
World's Most,
Youth Brigade,
Harpers Bizarre,
Qualms,
The Cure,
Unrelated Segments,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Stockholm Monsters,
Urselle,
Amon Düül II,
MC5,
Flamin' Groovies,
Man Eating Sloth,
Harmonia,
Funky Four + One,
Index,
Dave Gahan,
the Normal,
Chris Corsano,
The American Breed,
AZ,
Slick Rick,
Donald Byrd,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Deadbeat,
Minutemen,
The Invisible,
Hoover,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Suburban Knight,
Franke,
Basic Channel,
Q and Not U,
Jawbox,
Quando Quango,
Ten City,
Zapp,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
The Red Krayola,
Danielle Patucci,
Eric Dolphy,
Roger Hodgson,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Spandau Ballet,
David Bowie,
The Misunderstood,
Amon Düül,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Wasted Youth,
Jesper Dahlback,
Marmalade,
Joey Negro,
Lyres,
Rufus Thomas,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Toni Rubio,
Royal Trux,
Rakim,
The Sound,
Dorothy Ashby, Dorothy Ashby, Dorothy Ashby, Dorothy Ashby.
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.