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 Rwanda and from Manchester.
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 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mexico City and Johannesburg.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Salvador 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 1971 at the first Big Star practice in a loft in Memphis.
I was working on the chamberlin 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 Howard Jones to the grime kids.
I played it at the Troubador.
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 Soul Sonic Force. All the underground hits.
All DJ Style tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Anakelly record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bang On A Can record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a rhodes.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Los Fastidios,
Blancmange,
One Last Wish,
Sister Nancy,
Infiniti,
Bobby Womack,
H. Thieme,
Leonard Cohen,
Man Eating Sloth,
CMW,
Rotary Connection,
JFA,
The New Christs,
Vladislav Delay,
The Doors,
Half Japanese,
Newcleus,
Malaria!,
Fela Kuti,
The Searchers,
the Slits,
Can,
Cheater Slicks,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
James White and The Blacks,
Dead Boys,
Yaz,
Toni Rubio,
X-102,
Sight & Sound,
Urselle,
Crispian St. Peters,
The United States of America,
The Zeros,
Eric B and Rakim,
The Wake,
Chris & Cosey,
Absolute Body Control,
Pole,
The Young Rascals,
Byron Stingily,
Lou Christie,
Juan Atkins,
Sandy B,
Notorious Big And Bone Thugs,
Michelle Simonal,
Roxette,
The Gap Band,
The Associates,
Funky Four + One,
Patti Smith,
The Dirtbombs,
Drexciya,
Yazoo,
Kool Moe Dee,
The Busters,
Tim Buckley,
Moby Grape,
Clear Light,
B.T. Express,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
T. Rex,
U.S. Maple, U.S. Maple, U.S. Maple, U.S. Maple.
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.