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 Pakistan and from Copenhagen.
But I was there.
I was there in 1975.
I was there at the first Ubu show in Cleveland.
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 1968 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Jakarta and Philadelphia.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Accra 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 rhodes 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 Fatback Band 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 Wings. All the underground hits.
All Lee Hazlewood tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every June Days 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 '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a linndrum and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Donald Byrd record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a güiro.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Charles Mingus,
Scrapy,
U.S. Maple,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Hasil Adkins,
Jawbox,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Schoolly D,
Country Teasers,
Wings,
Magma,
Roger Hodgson,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Stereo Dub,
Joey Negro,
The Evens,
The Victims,
kango's stein massive,
Donny Hathaway,
John Holt,
Frankie Knuckles,
The Doors,
Make Up,
Fad Gadget,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Massinfluence,
The Smoke,
Mark Hollis,
Harry Pussy,
Malaria!,
Intrusion,
Second Layer,
Sugar Minott,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Bluetip,
The United States of America,
The Five Americans,
China Crisis,
Avey Tare,
Organ,
Anakelly,
The Saints,
Parry Music,
Funky Four + One,
Lakeside,
Derrick Morgan,
Pantytec,
Outsiders,
Technova,
Ultra Naté,
Skarface,
D'Angelo,
Agitation Free,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
The American Breed,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Nick Fraelich,
Excepter,
Alison Limerick,
The Fuzztones,
Accadde A, Accadde A, Accadde A, Accadde A.
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.