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 Kuwait and from Lyon.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Big Star show in Memphis.
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 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Sao Paulo and Houston.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Beijing 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 clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 The Shadows of Knight to the rap 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 Hardrive. All the underground hits.
All Yaz tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every John Cale record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a snare and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a U.S. Maple record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a linndrum.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
F. McDonald,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Traffic Nightmare,
David Axelrod,
Nils Olav,
The Cowsills,
OOIOO,
Radio Birdman,
the Bar-Kays,
The Dirtbombs,
Sister Nancy,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Connie Case,
Theoretical Girls,
Gastr Del Sol,
Los Fastidios,
The Doors,
The Slackers,
Erykah Badu,
Peter & Gordon,
Absolute Body Control,
Slave,
The Move,
Drive Like Jehu,
Barbara Tucker,
The Dead C,
Jacob Miller,
The Fuzztones,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Public Enemy,
Harpers Bizarre,
Barrington Levy,
Barry Ungar,
Scott Walker,
The Detroit Cobras,
Freddie Wadling,
Lalo Schifrin,
the Sonics,
Duran Duran,
Marine Girls,
Aloha Tigers,
Hot Snakes,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
The Monks,
the Normal,
Laurel Aitken,
The Standells,
Japan,
Drexciya,
Swell Maps,
Big Daddy Kane,
The Last Poets,
Brick,
Skarface,
the Germs,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Marc Almond,
Howard Jones,
Sex Pistols,
Stetsasonic,
Excepter,
John Cale, John Cale, John Cale, John Cale.
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.