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 Bahrain and from Glasgow.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and London.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lagos 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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the theremin 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 Throbbing Gristle to the techno kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Techniques. All the underground hits.
All Thompson Twins tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Steve Hackett 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a marimba and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Vogues record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a harpsichord.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
ABC,
Electric Prunes,
Jawbox,
Jeff Mills,
EPMD,
Ornette Coleman,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
Aaron Thompson,
Gil Scott Heron,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Faust,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Barracudas,
Oblivians,
Jeru the Damaja,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
A Certain Ratio,
Ken Boothe,
Radiopuhelimet,
David McCallum,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Boogie Down Productions,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Eric Dolphy,
Vainqueur,
The Star Department,
D'Angelo,
Guru Guru,
Unwound,
Franke,
Loose Ends,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
The New Christs,
Talk Talk,
The Cure,
Harmonia,
Lalann,
Reuben Wilson,
David Bowie,
The Blues Magoos,
Judy Mowatt,
Cheater Slicks,
Country Teasers,
Rekid,
Rakim,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Stetsasonic,
F. McDonald,
Deepchord,
The Smiths,
Sandy B,
Stereo Dub,
Heaven 17,
Gabor Szabo,
Aural Exciters,
Crispy Ambulance,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Althea and Donna,
Isaac Hayes,
John Foxx,
Sixth Finger,
Jerry's Kids,
Underground Resistance,
Arab on Radar,
Peter and Kerry, Peter and Kerry, Peter and Kerry, Peter and Kerry.
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.