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 Zambia and from Accra.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1965 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lagos and Portland.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mumbai 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 Art of Noise practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 Bush Tetras to the rap kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Kevin Saunderson. All the underground hits.
All Ken Boothe tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Dark Day 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a linndrum and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Sun Ra record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought an organ.
I hear that you and your band have sold your organ and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Magma,
Bobby Womack,
Au Pairs,
Jawbox,
Lucky Dragons,
The Moleskins,
Newcleus,
Jeff Mills,
Absolute Body Control,
Siglo XX,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Graham Central Station,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Agent Orange,
Glenn Branca,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
The Flesh Eaters,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
The Litter,
John Coltrane,
Niagra,
Guru Guru,
Gabor Szabo,
The Doors,
Angry Samoans,
Sound Behaviour,
the Association,
June Days,
Susan Cadogan,
B.T. Express,
Stetsasonic,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
The Move,
The Trojans,
The Motions,
The Index,
Ohio Players,
a-ha,
Arab on Radar,
The Associates,
Mary Jane Girls,
The Searchers,
Jesper Dahlback,
Khruangbin,
the Soft Cell,
Sandy B,
Metal Thangz,
Nils Olav,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Alton Ellis,
Chris & Cosey,
Television Personalities,
The Royal Family And The Poor,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
Eden Ahbez,
the Slits,
Rakim,
Clear Light,
The Names,
Electric Prunes,
Alphaville, Alphaville, Alphaville, Alphaville.
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.