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 Norway and from Portland.
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 1964 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Beijing 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 1983 at the first Bronski Beat practice in a loft in Brixton.
I was working on the oboe sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan to the funk kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Slackers. All the underground hits.
All Echo & the Bunnymen tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Alton Ellis record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal disco hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a snare and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Jeff Mills record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
The Dave Clark Five,
Nation of Ulysses,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
Throbbing Gristle,
MDC,
Patti Smith,
Television Personalities,
The Gap Band,
Godley & Creme,
Mark Hollis,
The Cowsills,
Grandmaster Flash,
Nils Olav,
EPMD,
Agent Orange,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
E-Dancer,
Shoche,
Blancmange,
Neu!,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
Arcadia,
Crash Course in Science,
Joyce Sims,
Saccharine Trust,
Quadrant,
Idris Muhammad,
Maleditus Sound,
Leonard Cohen,
Cluster,
Gang Starr,
Nik Kershaw,
Kurtis Blow,
Soul II Soul,
Rosa Yemen,
Grey Daturas,
June Days,
John Cale,
Scott Walker,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Cameo,
Ice-T,
Alphaville,
Sound Behaviour,
Negative Approach,
Depeche Mode,
Avey Tare,
Man Parrish,
Index,
Alton Ellis,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
Motorama,
The Fugs,
Josef K,
Basic Channel,
Boogie Down Productions,
Simply Red,
Thee Headcoats,
Fat Boys,
H. Thieme,
Lalann, Lalann, Lalann, Lalann.
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.