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 Taipei.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Bowie show in Bromley.
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 1967 to 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Johannesburg and Tehran.
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 linndrum sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch to the grime kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Letta Mbulu. All the underground hits.
All Nik Kershaw tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every John Lydon record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance 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 marimba and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bill Near record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Wolf Eyes,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
The Sound,
Soft Machine,
X-102,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Soul Sonic Force,
the Bar-Kays,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
L. Decosne,
Lou Reed,
These Immortal Souls,
The Zeros,
Rod Modell,
10cc,
The Star Department,
Radiopuhelimet,
The Gun Club,
Arcadia,
Surgeon,
Grey Daturas,
Jawbox,
The Toasters,
Parry Music,
Isaac Hayes,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Reagan Youth,
Rekid,
Gang of Four,
Simply Red,
Swell Maps,
Radio Birdman,
Pylon,
Nirvana,
Livin' Joy,
The Standells,
Sun Ra,
The Golliwogs,
The Grass Roots,
ABBA,
Make Up,
Yaz,
Kings Of Tomorrow,
Babytalk,
Alice Coltrane,
June of 44,
Cybotron,
Godley & Creme,
Nils Olav,
Anakelly,
The Real Kids,
Kevin Saunderson,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Barclay James Harvest,
Todd Rundgren,
Television Personalities,
Pierre Henry,
The Searchers, The Searchers, The Searchers, The Searchers.
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.