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 Hungary and from Salvador.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Bronski Beat show in Brixton.
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 1969 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lyon and New York.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Houston 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 synthesizer sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 The Wake to the rock kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 June Days. All the underground hits.
All Joyce Sims tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Richard Hell and the Voidoids record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Cowsills record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Harpers Bizarre,
The Star Department,
Guru Guru,
The Trojans,
Con Funk Shun,
Kool Moe Dee,
Marine Girls,
A Certain Ratio,
Arab on Radar,
Flipper,
Kurtis Blow,
Rites of Spring,
Alton Ellis,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Can,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Kerrie Biddell,
Frankie Knuckles,
X-102,
The Gap Band,
Model 500,
Inner City,
Fela Kuti,
June of 44,
Saccharine Trust,
Al Stewart,
Minny Pops,
World's Most,
The Divine Comedy,
Japan,
Eric Dolphy,
The Gun Club,
Negative Approach,
Robert Wyatt,
Scrapy,
Jesper Dahlback,
Cheater Slicks,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
This Heat,
Terrestrial Tones,
Oneida,
Joy Division,
KRS-One,
Television Personalities,
Adolescents,
Parry Music,
Zero Boys,
Yusef Lateef,
Von Mondo,
The Mojo Men,
Aswad,
Jacques Brel,
Thee Headcoats,
Minnie Riperton,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Peter and Kerry,
The Skatalites,
Scion,
The Zeros,
The Beau Brummels,
Tom Boy, Tom Boy, Tom Boy, Tom Boy.
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.