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 Guinea and from Stockholm.
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 1964 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Milan and Philadelphia.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Tokyo 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 1968 at the first Bowie practice in a loft in Bromley.
I was working on the rhodes 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 Prince Buster to the rock 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 The Fire Engines. All the underground hits.
All Lightning Bolt tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Erykah Badu record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance 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 snare and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Matthew Halsall record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a linndrum.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Thompson Twins,
the Germs,
the Swans,
Robert Wyatt,
MDC,
The Gun Club,
Kayak,
Colin Newman,
Sight & Sound,
Whodini,
Sonny Sharrock,
The Dirtbombs,
Maurizio,
Yusef Lateef,
Kerrie Biddell,
Agitation Free,
Marine Girls,
Bob Dylan,
Buzzcocks,
The Cure,
Ten City,
Fat Boys,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Bronski Beat,
Crispian St. Peters,
Saccharine Trust,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Ken Boothe,
Swans,
Scion,
The Remains,
X-Ray Spex,
Minny Pops,
Lebanon Hanover,
Minnie Riperton,
Joy Division,
The Evens,
Sparks,
Davy DMX,
Wally Richardson,
Panda Bear,
John Cale,
a-ha,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Eurythmics,
Royal Trux,
Bill Wells,
The Electric Prunes,
Slave,
Public Enemy,
Marmalade,
Animal Collective,
The Smoke,
Frankie Knuckles,
Goldenarms,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Barry Ungar,
Ronnie Foster,
Terror Squad Feat. Camron,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Electric Prunes, Electric Prunes, Electric Prunes, Electric Prunes.
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.