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 Indonesia and from Madrid.
But I was there.
I was there in 1975.
I was there at the first Ubu show in Cleveland.
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 1962 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lille and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Portland 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 mellotron 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 Fad Gadget to the crunk kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Gichy Dan. All the underground hits.
All The Fugs tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Henry Cow record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a harpsichord.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Todd Rundgren,
Deadbeat,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Sixth Finger,
The Grass Roots,
Minnie Riperton,
Rufus Thomas,
Nirvana,
The Electric Prunes,
Laurel Aitken,
The Gun Club,
The Gories,
June of 44,
Ultimate Spinach,
Ohio Players,
Minutemen,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Sister Nancy,
Matthew Halsall,
The Walker Brothers,
Gang of Four,
Parry Music,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
Flamin' Groovies,
The Fortunes,
Absolute Body Control,
Dawn Penn,
Index,
Erasure,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Rhythm & Sound,
Interpol,
Eddi Front,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Mars,
Iggy Pop,
Joensuu 1685,
Section 25,
Neil Young,
Mark Hollis,
Althea and Donna,
Charles Mingus,
the Association,
Gang Green,
the Human League,
Davy DMX,
The Cowsills,
Chris & Cosey,
Liliput,
Glenn Branca,
Mary Jane Girls,
Bad Manners,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Al Stewart,
Joe Finger,
EPMD,
The Men They Couldn't Hang,
Guru Guru,
Tropical Tobacco,
LL Cool J,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
H. Thieme,
Mandrill, Mandrill, Mandrill, Mandrill.
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.