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 Tunisia and from Manila.
But I was there.
I was there in 1967.
I was there at the first Rodriguez show in Detroit.
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 1960 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Beijing and Columbus.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Tokyo 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 organ sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 Gabor Szabo to the disco kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 CMW. All the underground hits.
All Underground Resistance tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Clear Light record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a harpsichord 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 chamberlin and bought a sitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Suburban Knight,
Q and Not U,
Ultra Naté,
Fela Kuti,
Dark Day,
World's Most,
Das Ding,
Adolescents,
Yusef Lateef,
Oblivians,
OOIOO,
Hardrive,
Scion,
The Young Rascals,
Wolf Eyes,
Jimmy McGriff,
Lungfish,
Sad Lovers and Giants,
The Litter,
Todd Terry,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Carl Craig,
Bronski Beat,
Outsiders,
The Selecter,
The Black Dice,
Marine Girls,
Blossom Toes,
Sarah Menescal,
Tom Boy,
Flamin' Groovies,
Delta 5,
Quando Quango,
In Retrospect,
Mo-Dettes,
Quantec,
The Pop Group,
UT,
Big Daddy Kane,
The Slackers,
A Certain Ratio,
Slave,
The Slits,
Wings,
Flash Fearless,
Franke,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Black Pus,
New Age Steppers,
Gabor Szabo,
Vladislav Delay,
10cc,
Boredoms,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
The American Breed,
John Coltrane,
Q65,
Bobby Womack,
Colin Newman,
Rakim,
Scientists, Scientists, Scientists, Scientists.
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.