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 Calgary.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Chic show in New York.
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 1968 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Shanghai and Spokane.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Calgary 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 808 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 Marcia Griffiths to the disco 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 This Heat. All the underground hits.
All Dorothy Ashby tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Searchers 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 guitar and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Spandau Ballet record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a mellotron.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Nik Kershaw,
KRS-One,
Sparks,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Peter and Kerry,
Tomorrow,
Tears for Fears,
Max Romeo,
The Angels of Light,
Public Image Ltd.,
Funkadelic,
the Slits,
Ultimate Spinach,
R.M.O.,
The Divine Comedy,
Talk Talk,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Amon Düül II,
Los Fastidios,
Erasure,
Amon Düül,
The Fire Engines,
The Martian,
The Kinks,
Grauzone,
Procol Harum,
Flash Fearless,
The Human League,
The New Christs,
Lungfish,
Andrew Hill,
Model 500,
Scan 7,
Soul II Soul,
Jandek,
Ultravox,
Marvin Gaye,
Accadde A,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Aural Exciters,
Eddi Front,
ABC,
Freddie Wadling,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
OOIOO,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
The Standells,
Nirvana,
Stetsasonic,
Boogie Down Productions,
Wire,
The Moleskins,
Hot Snakes,
Prince Buster,
Sound Behaviour,
The Star Department,
Arab on Radar,
James White and The Blacks,
Kerri Chandler,
Junior Murvin, Junior Murvin, Junior Murvin, Junior Murvin.
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.