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 Kosovo and from Spokane.
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 1968 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Toronto and Glasgow.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Bremen 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the arpeggiator 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 Barclay James Harvest to the grime kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 Birthday Party. All the underground hits.
All The Peanut Butter Conspiracy tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Kerri Chandler record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rap hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a theremin and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Barclay James Harvest record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
David Bowie,
Man Parrish,
Blossom Toes,
Radio Birdman,
Television Personalities,
Quadrant,
Hoover,
Lungfish,
Monks,
Electric Prunes,
Quantec,
Au Pairs,
The Names,
In Retrospect,
Porter Ricks,
Popol Vuh,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Average White Band,
The Raincoats,
Bobby Byrd,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Al Stewart,
Gastr Del Sol,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
The Invisible,
Aswad,
Cal Tjader,
Glenn Branca,
Rod Modell,
Icehouse,
China Crisis,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
Harpers Bizarre,
Ituana,
Robert Görl,
Negative Approach,
Aural Exciters,
Lucky Dragons,
The Alarm Clocks,
Joy Division,
Wings,
Circle Jerks,
Mars,
Guru Guru,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Sun Ra,
U.S. Maple,
Marshall Jefferson,
Kas Product,
Massinfluence,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
The Black Dice,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Dorothy Ashby,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Grey Daturas,
The Vogues,
Piero Umiliani,
Warren Ellis,
Pussy Galore,
The Stooges,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Fatback Band, Fatback Band, Fatback Band, Fatback Band.
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.