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 Micronesia and from Houston.
But I was there.
I was there in 1978.
I was there at the first Visage show in London.
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 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Portland and Paris.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Madrid 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 1979 at the first Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the guitar 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 Byron Stingily 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 Jacob Miller. All the underground hits.
All Outsiders tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime 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 clarinet and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Rufus Thomas record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Gil Scott Heron,
June of 44,
Procol Harum,
The Skatalites,
The Gories,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Rod Modell,
Japan,
Jeff Lynne,
Fat Boys,
DJ Sneak,
Pagans,
Franke,
ABBA,
the Sonics,
Cecil Taylor,
Alphaville,
Camberwell Now,
Pussy Galore,
Stereo Dub,
Kaleidoscope,
The Seeds,
Talk Talk,
Heaven 17,
8 Eyed Spy,
Mission of Burma,
The Dave Clark Five,
James White and The Blacks,
Barrington Levy,
Black Bananas,
Funky Four + One,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
The Searchers,
Bobby Hutcherson,
the Soft Cell,
Soul Sonic Force,
The Young Rascals,
The Moleskins,
Y Pants,
Sam Rivers,
Sparks,
Rapeman,
The Blackbyrds,
Porter Ricks,
Sound Behaviour,
The Slits,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
The Walker Brothers,
the Association,
Joensuu 1685,
The Knickerbockers,
Connie Case,
Ronan,
The Residents,
Arab on Radar,
The Vogues,
Alice Coltrane,
The Gap Band,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
Can,
Ohio Players,
Yellowson,
Kenny Larkin,
Pole, Pole, Pole, Pole.
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.