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 Uzbekistan and from Mexico City.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Second Layer show in South London.
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 1969 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Halifax and Spokane.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Madrid 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 oboe sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 Negative Approach to the dance kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Mojo Men. All the underground hits.
All Roy Ayers tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Robert Wyatt record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Gap Band record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a rhodes.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Prince Buster,
X-101,
Bobby Sherman,
Sonny Sharrock,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Colin Newman,
Kevin Saunderson,
Negative Approach,
Flamin' Groovies,
U.S. Maple,
The Cure,
Lakeside,
Joe Smooth,
Bobby Womack,
10cc,
Davy DMX,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Soft Cell,
Aswad,
Blancmange,
Pere Ubu,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Spoonie Gee,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
The Moleskins,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Bobby Byrd,
Crash Course in Science,
Soul II Soul,
Cluster,
Jacob Miller,
Boz Scaggs,
ABBA,
Zapp,
The Barracudas,
Junior Murvin,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Reuben Wilson,
John Cale,
This Heat,
Bizarre Inc.,
Shuggie Otis,
Jeff Lynne,
Laurel Aitken,
Jawbox,
Swans,
Subhumans,
Amon Düül,
Royal Trux,
Frankie Knuckles,
Howard Jones,
Das Ding,
Delon & Dalcan,
Kayak,
The American Breed,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Buzzcocks,
Jandek,
The Knickerbockers,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Eve St. Jones,
The Seeds, The Seeds, The Seeds, The Seeds.
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.