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 Namibia and from Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Soft Boys show in Cambridge.
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 1960 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Portland and Beijing.
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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Smoke to the dance kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 Neu! tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Brothers Johnson record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a guitar and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Neon Judgement record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Leaves,
Terry Callier,
Godley & Creme,
The Sonics,
Monolake,
The Walker Brothers,
Cal Tjader,
John Foxx,
Jeff Mills,
The Seeds,
Barry Ungar,
Cymande,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Ohio Players,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
Minor Threat,
Easy Going,
Oblivians,
David Axelrod,
FM Einheit,
Tommy Roe,
Bill Wells,
Gerry Rafferty,
Junior Murvin,
Toni Rubio,
Thee Headcoats,
Jerry's Kids,
June Days,
the Germs,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Massinfluence,
Fear,
Blancmange,
Glambeats Corp.,
Infiniti,
Lalo Schifrin,
Rufus Thomas,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Al Stewart,
The Move,
Max Romeo,
Deepchord,
Television Personalities,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Wally Richardson,
Stockholm Monsters,
La Düsseldorf,
Simply Red,
Girls At Our Best!,
Scientists,
Average White Band,
The Raincoats,
Shuggie Otis,
X-Ray Spex,
The Count Five,
Dave Gahan,
Sight & Sound,
Ronnie Foster,
the Sonics,
Guru Guru,
Au Pairs, Au Pairs, Au Pairs, Au Pairs.
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.