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 Poland and from Philadelphia.
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 1966 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Taipei and Delhi.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Woodstock 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the harpsichord 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 Byron Stingily to the dance kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 Amon Düül II. All the underground hits.
All Soft Machine tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Soul Sonic Force record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash 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 Idris Muhammad record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a sitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Gang Green,
The Names,
Deakin,
Aaron Thompson,
The Martian,
Röyhkä ja Rättö ja Lehtisalo,
Babytalk,
Lungfish,
Wire,
Talk Talk,
Jacques Brel,
Dark Day,
Tres Demented,
Marine Girls,
Matthew Bourne,
The Real Kids,
Sun City Girls,
New Age Steppers,
Visionaries,LMNO, T- Love & Iriscience,
MDC,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
The Offenders,
the Association,
The Divine Comedy,
Boredoms,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Gong,
Marc Almond,
Bizarre Inc.,
Theoretical Girls,
The Doors,
Con Funk Shun,
Siglo XX,
Sister Nancy,
The Durutti Column,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Nils Olav,
Reuben Wilson,
Au Pairs,
Bobby Byrd,
The Fortunes,
Scratch Acid,
Donny Hathaway,
Hashim,
Joy Division,
Black Bananas,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Sam Rivers,
Mark Hollis,
Brass Construction,
Bluetip,
Radiopuhelimet,
Drexciya,
Absolute Body Control,
Banda Bassotti,
Excepter,
Boogie Down Productions,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Minnie Riperton,
Nirvana,
The Wake, The Wake, The Wake, The Wake.
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.