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 Malta and from Hong Kong.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Bowie show in Bromley.
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 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Houston and Cairo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Calgary 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 marimba sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish to the rap 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 Pantaleimon. All the underground hits.
All Minor Threat tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Von Mondo record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rap hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a snare and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a KRS-One record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a sitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Lyres,
The New Christs,
Alton Ellis,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
Yazoo,
Mandrill,
Nico,
The Trojans,
The Zeros,
Cymande,
Suicide,
Freddie Wadling,
CMW,
Gang Green,
The J.B.'s,
Matthew Bourne,
The Associates,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
John Coltrane,
Kas Product,
Matthew Halsall,
the Slits,
Scientists,
Flamin' Groovies,
Whodini,
Technova,
Don Cherry,
The Dead C,
Agitation Free,
Kaleidoscope,
Swell Maps,
Eric B and Rakim,
Heaven 17,
John Lydon,
Deakin,
Cal Tjader,
Eyeless In Gaza,
The Monks,
Trumans Water,
The Red Krayola,
Sister Nancy,
The Cowsills,
Pussy Galore,
The Barracudas,
Janne Schatter,
Pulsallama,
Tim Buckley,
Todd Terry,
Nils Olav,
The Star Department,
Avey Tare,
Flipper,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
June of 44,
Ultimate Spinach,
Animal Collective,
Funky Four + One,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Connie Case,
Khruangbin,
X-101,
Chrome,
Guru Guru, Guru Guru, Guru Guru, Guru Guru.
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.