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 Croatia and from Seoul.
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 1963 to 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Cairo 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 Chic practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the chamberlin sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 Gong to the grime kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Velvet Underground. All the underground hits.
All The Associates tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Minutemen 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 '50s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a theremin and a güiro and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Names record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Dead Boys,
Kaleidoscope,
Blossom Toes,
Colin Newman,
Eric Copeland,
Alison Limerick,
Mr. Review,
Little Man,
Neil Young,
Stereo Dub,
The American Breed,
Josef K,
the Fania All-Stars,
The Grass Roots,
The Golliwogs,
The Monochrome Set,
The Blues Magoos,
The Trojans,
Gang of Four,
The Young Rascals,
Donny Hathaway,
Suicide,
Tubeway Army,
the Soft Cell,
Silicon Teens,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
cv313,
Schoolly D,
Lungfish,
Technova,
Rites of Spring,
Charles Mingus,
Wasted Youth,
In Retrospect,
Kerrie Biddell,
Lucky Dragons,
Harpers Bizarre,
Cameo,
Motorama,
Robert Görl,
Tom Boy,
Bluetip,
Roy Ayers,
Gregory Isaacs,
the Slits,
Simply Red,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
The Seeds,
Yazoo,
Can,
Pylon,
Thee Headcoats,
Funky Four + One,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
Jandek,
Eyeless In Gaza,
Soul II Soul,
Audionom,
Jawbox,
Michelle Simonal, Michelle Simonal, Michelle Simonal, Michelle Simonal.
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.