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 Rwanda and from Manchester.
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 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Houston and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Calgary 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 1976 at the first Chic practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Skriet to the funk 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 Niagra. All the underground hits.
All Newcleus tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Curtis Mayfield record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime 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 theremin and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Fat Boys record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a synthesizer.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Yaz,
Charles Mingus,
Andrew Hill,
A Certain Ratio,
The Busters,
Byron Stingily,
the Fania All-Stars,
The Associates,
Audionom,
Donny Hathaway,
Country Joe & The Fish,
The Human League,
The Neon Judgement,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
John Foxx,
Dark Day,
Bush Tetras,
The Modern Lovers,
Grandmaster Flash,
Average White Band,
The Count Five,
Erykah Badu,
Magazine,
Pussy Galore,
June Days,
Rites of Spring,
Theoretical Girls,
John Lydon,
Tim Buckley,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Joe Smooth,
The Black Dice,
Curtis Mayfield,
Bluetip,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Kerrie Biddell,
Aaron Thompson,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
Laurel Aitken,
Saccharine Trust,
The Golliwogs,
Metal Thangz,
Fad Gadget,
B.T. Express,
The Sonics,
Second Layer,
Agent Orange,
Icehouse,
Barrington Levy,
JFA,
Harpers Bizarre,
Whodini,
Notorious BIG live in Amsterdam,
cv313,
Mad Mike,
Minny Pops,
The Saints,
Wasted Youth,
Mantronix,
Deepchord,
Faraquet,
Stiv Bators, Stiv Bators, Stiv Bators, Stiv Bators.
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.