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 Guyana and from Glasgow.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Selda show in Istanbul.
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 1961 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in New York and Bologna.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Accra 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 güiro 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 Cure to the crunk kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 Royal Trux. All the underground hits.
All Little Man tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Joy Division record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk 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 a güiro and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Lou Reed & John Cale record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a linndrum.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Pet Shop Boys,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
LL Cool J,
The Barracudas,
The Trojans,
John Lydon,
Newcleus,
Procol Harum,
the Germs,
Rosa Yemen,
The Real Kids,
Can,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
The Cosmic Jokers,
The United States of America,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Jerry Gold Smith,
The Alarm Clocks,
the Slits,
The Gap Band,
Throbbing Gristle,
Heaven 17,
Tim Buckley,
Marmalade,
The Durutti Column,
The Dirtbombs,
Panda Bear,
The Happenings,
Yazoo,
The Doobie Brothers,
The Electric Prunes,
Kauko Röyhkä ja Narttu,
Animal Collective,
N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell,
The New Christs,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Grauzone,
Dawn Penn,
The Smoke,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Hardrive,
Make Up,
Pulsallama,
The Pop Group,
Electric Prunes,
The Neon Judgement,
Derrick Morgan,
Gong,
Suburban Knight,
The Flesh Eaters,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Isaac Hayes,
Shoche,
Camron Feat. Jay Z And Juelz,
Television Personalities,
Easy Going,
Bill Near,
Lyres,
Sunsets and Hearts,
The Blues Magoos, The Blues Magoos, The Blues Magoos, The Blues Magoos.
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.