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 Bremen.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
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 1962 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Tokyo.
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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the synthesizer 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 The Misunderstood to the electroclash 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 Todd Rundgren. All the underground hits.
All Q65 tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Jimmy McGriff 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Tropical Tobacco record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Eve St. Jones,
EPMD,
cv313,
The Selecter,
Bill Wells,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
Fifty Foot Hose,
The Pop Group,
The Gories,
Ultravox,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Wire,
Barrington Levy,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Cameo,
Urselle,
Marcia Griffiths,
Carl Craig,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Freddie Wadling,
Lungfish,
Infiniti,
Kaleidoscope,
Country Teasers,
James White and The Blacks,
Malaria!,
Max Romeo,
Lower 48,
Fear,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Thompson Twins,
Althea and Donna,
Steve Hackett,
Radiopuhelimet,
Pet Shop Boys,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Surgeon,
The Barracudas,
The Move,
Livin' Joy,
Amon Düül II,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Spoonie Gee,
Hashim,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
The Smoke,
H. Thieme,
Public Enemy,
Rufus Thomas,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Curtis Mayfield,
Anthony Braxton,
Joe Finger,
LL Cool J,
Metal Thangz,
Morten Harket,
Ralphi Rosario,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Yellowson, Yellowson, Yellowson, Yellowson.
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.