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 Papua New Guinea and from Lagos.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Selda show in Istanbul.
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 1964 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Bremen.
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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the linndrum 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 The Last Poets to the rock 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 Amazonics. All the underground hits.
All John Coltrane tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Duran Duran record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance 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 snare and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The United States of America record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Bobby Hutcherson,
The Smiths,
Motorama,
Kool Moe Dee,
Kurtis Blow,
Blancmange,
Lightning Bolt,
The Black Dice,
Blossom Toes,
8 Eyed Spy,
Thee Headcoats,
Minny Pops,
Cal Tjader,
The Associates,
Derrick Morgan,
Maleditus Sound,
Black Bananas,
Selector Dub Narcotic,
Ken Boothe,
The Fire Engines,
Half Japanese,
Skarface,
Pylon,
Camouflage,
Scientists,
Neil Young,
Radiopuhelimet,
Laurel Aitken,
The Evens,
Sonic Youth,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
Peter & Gordon,
The Flesh Eaters,
Bronski Beat,
The Toasters,
Crispy Ambulance,
Mantronix,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Drexciya,
Cameo,
The Modern Lovers,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Flamin' Groovies,
The Mummies,
Don Cherry,
Barrington Levy,
Lalo Schifrin,
Depeche Mode,
The Kinks,
Cluster,
Unwound,
The Dead C,
Kauko Röyhkä ja Narttu,
Bluetip,
New York Dolls,
Stereo Dub,
Nas,
Toni Rubio,
Marc Almond, Marc Almond, Marc Almond, Marc Almond.
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.