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 Lesotho and from Hong Kong.
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 1968 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Portland and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Delhi 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 Lewis practice in a loft in Vancouver.
I was working on the marimba 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 X-102 to the crunk kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 ABBA. All the underground hits.
All Agitation Free tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Roy Ayers 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Harpers Bizarre record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Fugs,
Rosa Yemen,
Bush Tetras,
Freddie Wadling,
UT,
Boogie Down Productions,
Young Marble Giants,
Infiniti,
Agent Orange,
The Knickerbockers,
Ronan,
Eric B and Rakim,
Shoche,
Erykah Badu,
Swans,
Niagra,
Mars,
Ossler,
Sonny Sharrock,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
The Zeros,
Angry Samoans,
Fat Boys,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Swell Maps,
The Dirtbombs,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Deepchord,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Roger Hodgson,
Pantaleimon,
Duran Duran,
MDC,
Chris Corsano,
Panda Bear,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Bronski Beat,
Nick Fraelich,
Scion,
Eric Copeland,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Graham Central Station,
Aloha Tigers,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Desert Stars,
The Dead C,
Byron Stingily,
48th St. Collective,
Don Cherry,
D'Angelo,
Patti Smith,
Los Fastidios,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Joe Smooth,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
The Index,
David Axelrod,
Alice Coltrane,
The Offenders, The Offenders, The Offenders, The Offenders.
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.