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 Spain 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 1963 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Johannesburg.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Toronto 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 1980 at the first Cybotron practice in a loft in Detroit.
I was working on the mellotron sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Slits to the jazz kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Patti Smith. All the underground hits.
All Bluetip tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Mars record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a spring reverb and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Johnny Clarke 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?
Bang On A Can,
Crime,
Wings,
Gang Gang Dance,
The Busters,
Girls At Our Best!,
A Flock of Seagulls,
E-Dancer,
Flamin' Groovies,
Ralphi Rosario,
Carl Craig,
Flipper,
This Heat,
Main Source,
David Axelrod,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Frankie Knuckles,
Rufus Thomas,
Gang Green,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Juan Atkins,
Danielle Patucci,
Inner City,
The Searchers,
Skriet,
The Saints,
Dave Gahan,
The Martian,
Kaleidoscope,
Sun City Girls,
Das Ding,
Sexual Harrassment,
Average White Band,
Michelle Simonal,
Eric Dolphy,
Soft Cell,
MDC,
Liliput,
The Misunderstood,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Mission of Burma,
Reagan Youth,
The Blues Magoos,
Pet Shop Boys,
Deepchord,
Swans,
Con Funk Shun,
Dorothy Ashby,
JFA,
cv313,
Sonic Youth,
Scan 7,
Pulsallama,
The Star Department,
Sparks,
Tom Boy,
The United States of America,
Toni Rubio,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Max Romeo,
Dead Boys,
The Techniques, The Techniques, The Techniques, The Techniques.
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.