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 Spokane.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Can show in Cologne.
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 Accra and Shanghai.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lille 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 arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen 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 Harpers Bizarre to the dance 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 Donny Hathaway. All the underground hits.
All JFA tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Cal Tjader 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a chamberlin and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Smoke record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Absolute Body Control,
Sandy B,
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,
The Raincoats,
The Divine Comedy,
David Axelrod,
Groovy Waters,
Minutemen,
ABBA,
Juan Atkins,
CMW,
Trumans Water,
Gerry Rafferty,
Thee Headcoats,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Flipper,
Sun Ra,
Young Marble Giants,
The Kinks,
Lower 48,
U.S. Maple,
Soul Sonic Force,
the Swans,
The Mojo Men,
Porter Ricks,
Ken Boothe,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
The Slackers,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Morten Harket,
Gang of Four,
Soft Machine,
Zapp,
Pet Shop Boys,
Gang Gang Dance,
Terrestrial Tones,
Quando Quango,
the Germs,
The J.B.'s,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
DJ Style,
Dual Sessions,
Mark Hollis,
Magma,
Pantytec,
Lou Reed,
Ultra Naté,
Big Daddy Kane,
Neil Young,
Barry Ungar,
Skaos,
Jerry Gold Smith,
Theoretical Girls,
Y Pants,
Tropical Tobacco,
Sonny Sharrock,
Beasts of Bourbon,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Jeff Mills,
The Motions, The Motions, The Motions, The Motions.
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.