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 Cuba and from Toronto.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Bronski Beat show in Brixton.
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 1968 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Toronto and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Tokyo 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 1979 at the first Josef K practice in a loft in Edinburgh.
I was working on the clarinet 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 Eric Copeland to the techno kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Lalo Schifrin. All the underground hits.
All Alton Ellis tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Albert Ayler 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 '90s.
I hear you're buying an oboe and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Matthew Halsall record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a guitar.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
The Mighty Diamonds,
The Black Dice,
James Chance & The Contortions,
AZ,
James White and The Blacks,
Blancmange,
Electric Prunes,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Procol Harum,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Josef K,
The Martian,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Gerry Rafferty,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Byron Stingily,
The Stooges,
Amon Düül II,
Barry Ungar,
Eve St. Jones,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Radio Birdman,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Ornette Coleman,
Gang of Four,
Swell Maps,
Fifty Foot Hose,
ABBA,
Sun City Girls,
A Certain Ratio,
Pagans,
Fugazi,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Siglo XX,
Qualms,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Heaven 17,
Todd Rundgren,
Brick,
Absolute Body Control,
Sun Ra,
Joensuu 1685,
Negative Approach,
Marcia Griffiths,
Kas Product,
Derrick Morgan,
Ralphi Rosario,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Niagra,
Alton Ellis,
48th St. Collective,
Dark Day,
June of 44,
The Techniques,
Eric Copeland,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Marvin Gaye,
The Victims,
The Kinks,
Tom Boy, Tom Boy, Tom Boy, Tom Boy.
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.