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 El Salvador and from Bologna.
But I was there.
I was there in 1977.
I was there at the first Zapp show in Hamilton.
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 1961 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Salvador and London.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Columbus 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 1979 at the first Josef K practice in a loft in Edinburgh.
I was working on the organ 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 Television Personalities 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 Gang of Four. All the underground hits.
All Jerry's Kids tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Boogie Down Productions record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a guitar and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Basic Channel record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a marimba.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
New York Dolls,
K-Klass,
Nick Fraelich,
Lower 48,
Lonnie Liston Smith,
Ludus,
Pylon,
Camouflage,
The Raincoats,
LL Cool J,
Mark Hollis,
8 Eyed Spy,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Young Marble Giants,
MC5,
Warren Ellis,
Yaz,
Glenn Branca,
Supertramp,
David McCallum,
DJ Sneak,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
Basic Channel,
The Golliwogs,
Bobby Hutcherson,
The Fugs,
Jeff Lynne,
Audionom,
Rekid,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Eric B and Rakim,
Mo-Dettes,
Stereo Dub,
Agent Orange,
a-ha,
Leonard Cohen,
Morten Harket,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
Bob Dylan,
Scott Walker,
Public Image Ltd.,
Scrapy,
Tears for Fears,
Bang On A Can,
A Certain Ratio,
Shoche,
Al Stewart,
Sun Ra,
Laurel Aitken,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Black Pus,
The Monochrome Set,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Unwound,
Prince Buster, Prince Buster, Prince Buster, Prince Buster.
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.