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 China and from Tokyo.
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 1969 to 1972.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Jakarta and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lyon 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 1979 at the first Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the synthesizer 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 Quantec to the grime kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Robert Wyatt. All the underground hits.
All Al Stewart tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Sly & The Family Stone record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge 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 an organ and a synthesizer and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Quadrant record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought an organ.
I hear that you and your band have sold your organ and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Harpers Bizarre,
Soulsonic Force,
The Monks,
The Real Kids,
Carl Craig,
Nick Fraelich,
Rufus Thomas,
Roxette,
Traffic Nightmare,
Schoolly D,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
The Durutti Column,
Easy Going,
Judy Mowatt,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Con Funk Shun,
Electric Prunes,
Second Layer,
The Index,
Thompson Twins,
DJ Style,
Gil Scott Heron,
The Victims,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Alice Coltrane,
The Martian,
The Busters,
Cybotron,
Kool Moe Dee,
Darondo,
Angry Samoans,
Chrome,
The American Breed,
Ultravox,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Brand Nubian,
The Neon Judgement,
Susan Cadogan,
Ponytail,
Ituana,
Bronski Beat,
Procol Harum,
Bob Dylan,
the Swans,
Drexciya,
Anakelly,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Main Source,
Grey Daturas,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
Nik Kershaw,
Hardrive,
Marmalade,
Monks,
Mary Jane Girls,
Arab on Radar,
The Smiths,
Ice-T,
Lalo Schifrin, Lalo Schifrin, Lalo Schifrin, Lalo Schifrin.
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.