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 Marshall Islands and from London.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Buzzcocks show in Bolton.
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 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Calgary and Toronto.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Spokane 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 1983 at the first Bronski Beat practice in a loft in Brixton.
I was working on the harpsichord sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 LL Cool J to the dance kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Mandrill. All the underground hits.
All Roy Ayers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Bauhaus 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a mellotron and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Velvet Underground record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Velvet Underground,
Andrew Hill,
Eric B and Rakim,
Deepchord,
The Royal Family And The Poor,
X-Ray Spex,
Grey Daturas,
The Doors,
Von Mondo,
The Sonics,
Sixth Finger,
Reagan Youth,
Jeff Mills,
The Smiths,
Moss Icon,
Surgeon,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Fluxion,
The Names,
Robert Görl,
Public Image Ltd.,
Roxette,
David Bowie,
Susan Cadogan,
Avey Tare,
Bad Manners,
Althea and Donna,
Das Ding,
Dennis Brown,
Kevin Saunderson,
L. Decosne,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Sonny Sharrock,
Brand Nubian,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Kurtis Blow,
Groovy Waters,
the Swans,
Country Teasers,
Jacob Miller,
Harpers Bizarre,
Stockholm Monsters,
Scott Walker + Sunn O))),
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Soft Cell,
the Sonics,
Drive Like Jehu,
Judy Mowatt,
Sex Pistols,
Tom Boy,
Cameo,
Ponytail,
the Bar-Kays,
Average White Band,
Pere Ubu,
Robert Wyatt,
The Fuzztones,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Warsaw,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
The Busters,
Colin Newman, Colin Newman, Colin Newman, Colin Newman.
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.