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 Papua New Guinea and from Sao Paulo.
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 1964 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in London and London.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Columbus 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 1977 at the first Zapp practice in a loft in Hamilton.
I was working on the rhodes sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Youth Brigade to the rap 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 The Monks. All the underground hits.
All Soft Cell tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Pop Group 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a theremin and a synthesizer and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a U.S. Maple record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a rhodes.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Alton Ellis,
Peter & Gordon,
Eyeless In Gaza,
Lee Hazlewood,
Das Ding,
Rosa Yemen,
Gil Scott Heron,
Jeru the Damaja,
Sun Ra,
Alphaville,
Bobby Hutcherson,
the Germs,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
The Last Poets,
B.T. Express,
The Raincoats,
Grauzone,
Al Stewart,
Steve Hackett,
AZ,
Hardrive,
The Neon Judgement,
June Days,
The Misunderstood,
Lower 48,
Rotary Connection,
The Selecter,
Godley & Creme,
Jandek,
Nation of Ulysses,
John Cale,
The Music Machine,
The Gun Club,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
The Angels of Light,
Flipper,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Sparks,
The Flesh Eaters,
Nas,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
the Human League,
In Retrospect,
Lebanon Hanover,
DNA,
Motorama,
Nik Kershaw,
The Star Department,
Rapeman,
Electric Prunes,
Cluster,
Crispy Ambulance,
Althea and Donna,
Camberwell Now,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
the Sonics,
Robert Wyatt,
Niagra,
Basic Channel,
The Slackers,
T. Rex,
Dual Sessions,
T.S.O.L.,
John Foxx,
Swell Maps, Swell Maps, Swell Maps, Swell Maps.
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.