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 San Marino and from Taipei.
But I was there.
I was there in 1967.
I was there at the first Rodriguez show in Detroit.
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 1960 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in London and Cairo.
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 1977 at the first Mistral practice in a loft in Amsterdam.
I was working on the güiro sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen 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 Gong to the dance 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 48th St. Collective. All the underground hits.
All Banda Bassotti tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Rapeman 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 '50s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a spring reverb and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Ralphi Rosario record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a güiro.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Johnny Clarke,
The Grass Roots,
Sparks,
Fela Kuti,
Thompson Twins,
Steve Hackett,
Archie Shepp,
The New Christs,
Goldenarms,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
One Last Wish,
Jawbox,
Nico,
Pulsallama,
Max Romeo,
John Cale,
Simply Red,
Stockholm Monsters,
The Martian,
Pagans,
Crooked Eye,
Fat Boys,
Moby Grape,
the Association,
Groovy Waters,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Bronski Beat,
The Fire Engines,
World's Most,
Man Eating Sloth,
John Foxx,
Ice-T,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
The Fall,
The Star Department,
Second Layer,
The Beau Brummels,
Black Sheep,
ABC,
The Fortunes,
Black Flag,
Bluetip,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Bill Wells,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Marvin Gaye,
Bobby Sherman,
June Days,
UT,
A Certain Ratio,
Can,
The Slackers,
Moss Icon,
Ohio Players,
Television,
Loose Ends,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Shuggie Otis,
Rites of Spring,
Terrestrial Tones, Terrestrial Tones, Terrestrial Tones, Terrestrial Tones.
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.