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 East Timor and from Shanghai.
But I was there.
I was there in 1967.
I was there at the first Rodriguez show in Detroit.
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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Bologna and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Cairo 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 1976 at the first Soft Boys practice in a loft in Cambridge.
I was working on the synthesizer sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen 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 Cosmic Jokers to the rock 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 Vaughan Mason & Crew. All the underground hits.
All Animal Collective tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Brothers Johnson record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Gregory Isaacs record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a 808.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
James White and The Blacks,
Schoolly D,
Infiniti,
John Coltrane,
Tubeway Army,
The Blackbyrds,
Sixth Finger,
Sarah Menescal,
Kool Moe Dee,
Alice Coltrane,
Nick Fraelich,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Mantronix,
The Grass Roots,
Youth Brigade,
Section 25,
Gang Green,
Tom Boy,
Jacob Miller,
Sonic Youth,
Dawn Penn,
Metal Thangz,
MDC,
Kenny Larkin,
The Saints,
Fat Boys,
Rod Modell,
Chrome,
Kerri Chandler,
Sandy B,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Mission of Burma,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Mars,
Eurythmics,
Chris & Cosey,
The J.B.'s,
Lou Christie,
Darondo,
Drive Like Jehu,
B.T. Express,
The Real Kids,
June of 44,
Albert Ayler,
The Blues Magoos,
Stetsasonic,
Joensuu 1685,
Curtis Mayfield,
Brass Construction,
Ronnie Foster,
Barclay James Harvest,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Lucky Dragons,
Robert Hood,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Los Fastidios,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Quadrant,
Terry Callier,
The Techniques,
Soulsonic Force,
Alison Limerick, Alison Limerick, Alison Limerick, Alison Limerick.
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.