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 Bolivia and from Mexico City.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Lewis show in Vancouver.
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 1961 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Columbus and Portland.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Cairo 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 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie 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 Sound Behaviour to the disco 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 Strawberry Alarm Clock. All the underground hits.
All Hardrive tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Skatalites record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock 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 synthesizer and a sitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Joe Finger record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a mellotron.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a 808.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Jeff Mills,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Smog,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
The Zeros,
Brand Nubian,
Sight & Sound,
Eric Copeland,
Yellowson,
Lindisfarne,
Mad Mike,
Nick Fraelich,
The Fall,
Archie Shepp,
Sad Lovers and Giants,
Lucky Dragons,
The Electric Prunes,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
The Music Machine,
The Red Krayola,
Barry Ungar,
Severed Heads,
Cluster,
Magma,
Dorothy Ashby,
Rosa Yemen,
Josef K,
The Modern Lovers,
Television Personalities,
cv313,
The Neon Judgement,
the Normal,
Shuggie Otis,
Kurtis Blow,
Theoretical Girls,
Y Pants,
Little Man,
Gil Scott Heron,
Surgeon,
Slick Rick,
Tim Buckley,
Sandy B,
Pantytec,
Porter Ricks,
Talk Talk,
Rod Modell,
Electric Prunes,
Guru Guru,
Sugar Minott,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
The Flesh Eaters,
Lightning Bolt,
Mo-Dettes,
The Leaves,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Bang On A Can,
R.M.O.,
Cheater Slicks,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Radiopuhelimet,
Mandrill,
Glenn Branca, Glenn Branca, Glenn Branca, Glenn Branca.
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.