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 Somalia and from Jakarta.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Second Layer show in South London.
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 1964 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lagos and London.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Philadelphia 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 1983 at the first Bronski Beat practice in a loft in Brixton.
I was working on the mellotron sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 The Kinks to the dance kids.
I played it at the Troubador.
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 Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks. All the underground hits.
All Sun Ra Arkestra tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Gil Scott Heron record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grime hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Faraquet record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a 808.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Prince Buster,
Eden Ahbez,
Max Romeo,
Cybotron,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Scan 7,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Jerry Gold Smith,
David Bowie,
Y Pants,
The Searchers,
Shuggie Otis,
Ohio Players,
Moby Grape,
Isaac Hayes,
Nils Olav,
Ultra Naté,
Aural Exciters,
Sugar Minott,
Todd Rundgren,
The Litter,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Lalann,
Althea and Donna,
Fat Boys,
The Electric Prunes,
Jeru the Damaja,
Japan,
Symarip,
Robert Görl,
Wire,
The Sonics,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Sam Rivers,
The Neon Judgement,
F. McDonald,
Moss Icon,
Stockholm Monsters,
X-Ray Spex,
The Men They Couldn't Hang,
Blake Baxter,
In Retrospect,
Gang of Four,
Popol Vuh,
Procol Harum,
Dawn Penn,
48th St. Collective,
DNA,
Flash Fearless,
Kool G Rap & DJ Polo,
Scratch Acid,
Sun Ra,
Avey Tare,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Sexual Harrassment,
Scientists,
Frankie Knuckles,
Half Japanese,
Byron Stingily,
Alton Ellis,
the Germs, the Germs, the Germs, the Germs.
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.