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 Guatemala and from Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Chic show in New York.
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 1967 to 1972.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Seoul and Bremen.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school London 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 marimba 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 Mandrill to the funk 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 John Lydon. All the underground hits.
All The Gladiators tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Kauko Röyhkä ja Narttu record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a clarinet and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Art Ensemble Of Chicago record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a chamberlin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Fifty Foot Hose,
Suicide,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Goldenarms,
Jerry's Kids,
Hoover,
Arab on Radar,
Organ,
Procol Harum,
Joe Smooth,
T.S.O.L.,
Tropical Tobacco,
Kerrie Biddell,
Man Parrish,
The Smoke,
Main Source,
Yusef Lateef,
Hashim,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Archie Shepp,
Brick,
Jawbox,
Toni Rubio,
Yazoo,
Jesper Dahlback,
Smog,
The Tremeloes,
Warsaw,
Cal Tjader,
Fat Boys,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Mantronix,
the Human League,
PIL,
Steve Hackett,
Livin' Joy,
Anthony Braxton,
Royal Trux,
Rakim,
The Monochrome Set,
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark,
Marcia Griffiths,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
John Holt,
X-Ray Spex,
Eli Mardock,
Kas Product,
Crispy Ambulance,
Reagan Youth,
Graham Central Station,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Tubeway Army,
Joey Negro,
Sällskapet,
The Vogues,
Althea and Donna,
Absolute Body Control,
The Busters,
Sam Rivers,
Country Joe & The Fish,
The Selecter,
Slick Rick,
The Grass Roots,
Hardrive, Hardrive, Hardrive, Hardrive.
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.