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 Senegal and from Houston.
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 1967 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Glasgow.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manchester 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 spring reverb 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 Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic to the crunk kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Bobby Hutcherson. All the underground hits.
All Eli Mardock tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Sad Lovers and Giants record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Clear Light record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Barrington Levy,
New Order,
Clear Light,
A Certain Ratio,
Soul Sonic Force,
Buzzcocks,
Kas Product,
Lou Reed,
Eve St. Jones,
Flash Fearless,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Lakeside,
In Retrospect,
The Litter,
Kool Moe Dee,
Skriet,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Nico,
Eden Ahbez,
Lyres,
Juan Atkins,
Pulsallama,
The Detroit Cobras,
The New Christs,
These Immortal Souls,
Radiohead,
Byron Stingily,
Throbbing Gristle,
Fluxion,
Carl Craig,
DNA,
The Walker Brothers,
The Smiths,
Bobby Womack,
Japan,
Heaven 17,
The Dirtbombs,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
The Gories,
Chris Corsano,
Colin Newman,
Angry Samoans,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
The Standells,
Sixth Finger,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Ultimate Spinach,
Glambeats Corp.,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Suburban Knight,
Funky Four + One,
Todd Rundgren,
Icehouse,
Sam Rivers,
The Invisible,
Dave Gahan,
Cheater Slicks,
Mad Mike,
Shuggie Otis,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Nik Kershaw, Nik Kershaw, Nik Kershaw, Nik Kershaw.
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.