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 Greece and from Sao Paulo.
But I was there.
I was there in 1987.
I was there at the first Nirvana show in Seattle.
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 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Woodstock and Hong Kong.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Sao Paulo 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 spring reverb sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie 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 Animal Collective to the techno kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 The Beau Brummels. All the underground hits.
All Al Stewart tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every MC5 record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a marimba and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Rites of Spring record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a linndrum.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Neon Judgement,
Public Image Ltd.,
Can,
Unwound,
10cc,
Amon Düül,
Donald Byrd,
The Associates,
Cecil Taylor,
The Sound,
The Velvet Underground,
CMW,
The Smoke,
Chris & Cosey,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Mark Hollis,
Man Eating Sloth,
The Five Americans,
Reagan Youth,
The Martian,
The Smiths,
Eden Ahbez,
The Offenders,
Saccharine Trust,
Joe Finger,
Joyce Sims,
Tomorrow,
Traffic Nightmare,
The J.B.'s,
Nils Olav,
Black Sheep,
The Zeros,
The Gories,
Andrew Hill,
Curtis Mayfield,
Sun Ra,
The Young Rascals,
Magazine,
the Association,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
One Last Wish,
Babytalk,
Clear Light,
Todd Rundgren,
Simply Red,
Derrick Morgan,
Index,
Lou Christie,
Anakelly,
Cameo,
Fad Gadget,
Pylon,
Delon & Dalcan,
K-Klass,
Spoonie Gee,
Deakin,
Lee Hazlewood,
Quando Quango,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Avey Tare,
Derrick May, Derrick May, Derrick May, Derrick May.
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.