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 Serbia and from Johannesburg.
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 1965 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Copenhagen.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Portland 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the oboe 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 Arcadia to the jazz kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 Sandy B. All the underground hits.
All The Durutti Column tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Gang of Four 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 '90s.
I hear you're buying an organ and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Fela Kuti record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a rhodes.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Rhythm & Sound,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
Gerry Rafferty,
Trumans Water,
Dead Boys,
Todd Terry,
UT,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Ludus,
Wings,
The Human League,
Nico,
Slave,
Charles Mingus,
Bizarre Inc.,
Boogie Down Productions,
The Star Department,
Babytalk,
The Blues Magoos,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Marmalade,
Jesper Dahlback,
Jawbox,
A Certain Ratio,
Bill Wells,
Eric Dolphy,
Make Up,
Johnny Osbourne,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
H. Thieme,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Roxy Music,
Flash Fearless,
Whodini,
Royal Trux,
Leonard Cohen,
Wire,
Suburban Knight,
Soft Cell,
Dawn Penn,
Kenny Larkin,
Lee Hazlewood,
Michelle Simonal,
Stiv Bators,
Todd Rundgren,
Lakeside,
Basic Channel,
Surgeon,
Sparks,
Crispy Ambulance,
Von Mondo,
The Martian,
Easy Going,
Kevin Saunderson,
Youth Brigade,
Cybotron,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Byron Stingily,
X-Ray Spex,
Iggy Pop,
Rites of Spring, Rites of Spring, Rites of Spring, Rites of Spring.
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.