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 Switzerland and from Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1965.
I was there at the first Beefheart show in Lancaster.
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 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lille and Portland.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Johannesburg 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 1973 at the first Television practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 T.S.O.L. to the crunk kids.
I played it at the Troubador.
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 The Electric Prunes. All the underground hits.
All Mission of Burma tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every 8 Eyed Spy record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Hashim record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
China Crisis,
Minor Threat,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
The Knickerbockers,
Yellowson,
Wire,
The Slackers,
Cymande,
Porter Ricks,
Skaos,
Con Funk Shun,
Jandek,
Scrapy,
James White and The Blacks,
Wolf Eyes,
Harry Pussy,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
The Names,
The Residents,
James Chance & The Contortions,
The Leaves,
The Toasters,
Alton Ellis,
Joe Smooth,
Trumans Water,
Oblivians,
Hardrive,
The Invisible,
KRS-One,
Anakelly,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
The Remains,
Brick,
World's Most,
Notorious Big And Bone Thugs,
Masters at Work,
Robert Hood,
Derrick Morgan,
Eric Dolphy,
Unrelated Segments,
Motorama,
Kurtis Blow,
Suicide,
Bizarre Inc.,
Shoche,
Groovy Waters,
Sunsets and Hearts,
Von Mondo,
Prince Buster,
Accadde A,
Magma,
Lightning Bolt,
Letta Mbulu,
Faust,
Tommy Roe,
Eric B and Rakim,
Blancmange,
Cluster,
Peter & Gordon,
Dual Sessions,
The Detroit Cobras,
Ronnie Foster,
Sun City Girls, Sun City Girls, Sun City Girls, Sun City Girls.
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.