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 Taiwan and from Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1977.
I was there at the first Zapp show in Hamilton.
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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lyon and Copenhagen.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Spokane 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Lou Reed to the electroclash kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 New Order. All the underground hits.
All The Tremeloes tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Man Parrish 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 '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an oboe and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Notorious Big And Bone Thugs record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Gap Band,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Essential Logic,
Tropical Tobacco,
The Red Krayola,
FM Einheit,
Ossler,
Drexciya,
China Crisis,
Sam Rivers,
Idris Muhammad,
D'Angelo,
Aloha Tigers,
Kenny Larkin,
Skarface,
the Bar-Kays,
Scion,
Warsaw,
Black Pus,
Joy Division,
Iggy Pop,
David Bowie,
X-101,
The Smiths,
Man Parrish,
Nik Kershaw,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Loose Ends,
Deepchord,
Ohio Players,
Fad Gadget,
Michelle Simonal,
Dawn Penn,
The Stooges,
Thompson Twins,
The Birthday Party,
Chrome,
The Detroit Cobras,
Roxy Music,
H. Thieme,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Slick Rick,
Los Fastidios,
The Victims,
Audionom,
Minutemen,
Fatback Band,
Shoche,
Inner City,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Fluxion,
Fela Kuti,
Crispy Ambulance,
Adolescents,
Ice-T,
Matthew Halsall,
Mr. Review,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Terry Callier,
Peter & Gordon,
Can,
Little Man, Little Man, Little Man, Little Man.
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.