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 Zambia and from Houston.
But I was there.
I was there in 1970.
I was there at the first Onyeabor show in Enugu.
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 1965 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Salvador and Lille.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Shanghai 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 1976 at the first Feelies practice in a loft in Haledon.
I was working on the snare sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 Colin Newman to the rap kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 Barclay James Harvest. All the underground hits.
All Camberwell Now tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Angels of Light & Akron/Family record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal techno hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an oboe and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Suburban Knight 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?
Thee Headcoats,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Soulsonic Force,
Wings,
Jeff Lynne,
The Fugs,
Siouxsie and the Banshees,
Banda Bassotti,
KRS-One,
Crash Course in Science,
Bauhaus,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Mark Hollis,
CMW,
The Gladiators,
Ken Boothe,
Newcleus,
Sexual Harrassment,
Dave Gahan,
Funkadelic,
The Gun Club,
Das Ding,
Isaac Hayes,
Panda Bear,
Echospace,
the Human League,
Slave,
Joe Finger,
Lou Christie,
Anthony Braxton,
Howard Jones,
the Association,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Harpers Bizarre,
Organ,
Alice Coltrane,
Grey Daturas,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Gang Green,
Scan 7,
Bob Dylan,
Essential Logic,
The Grass Roots,
Rapeman,
Groovy Waters,
Joyce Sims,
The Human League,
Flamin' Groovies,
Charles Mingus,
Minnie Riperton,
Desert Stars,
DJ Style,
Barry Ungar,
Rosa Yemen,
Spoonie Gee,
Michelle Simonal,
Cecil Taylor,
Sandy B,
Symarip,
Todd Rundgren,
Glenn Branca,
Skaos,
Jimmy McGriff, Jimmy McGriff, Jimmy McGriff, Jimmy McGriff.
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.