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 Philippines and from Stockholm.
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 1961 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mumbai and Johannesburg.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Bologna 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 snare 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 Essential Logic to the funk 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 Basic Channel. All the underground hits.
All Soft Machine tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Angels of Light record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying an organ and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Pole record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a güiro.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The United States of America,
Albert Ayler,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Urselle,
Interpol,
Bad Manners,
ABBA,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Aswad,
Crispian St. Peters,
The Fuzztones,
Quando Quango,
Moss Icon,
Joy Division,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Idris Muhammad,
The Black Dice,
Pere Ubu,
Soulsonic Force,
Cybotron,
Godley & Creme,
Newcleus,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Nation of Ulysses,
Parry Music,
Tom Boy,
Liaisons Dangereuses,
Qualms,
Erasure,
Mad Mike,
X-101,
Pussy Galore,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Eric Dolphy,
Minny Pops,
World's Most,
Yusef Lateef,
Reuben Wilson,
Bobby Hutcherson,
The Star Department,
China Crisis,
Lou Reed,
Rosa Yemen,
Marc Almond,
The Invisible,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Jerry's Kids,
Eddi Front,
Stereo Dub,
Kerrie Biddell,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Anakelly,
The Neon Judgement,
Angry Samoans,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Sällskapet,
The Smoke,
Cymande,
CMW,
Suburban Knight,
Scrapy,
The Standells, The Standells, The Standells, The Standells.
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.