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 Luxembourg and from Bologna.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Neu! show in Düsseldorf.
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 1968 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Stockholm.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Hong Kong 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 güiro 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 Albert Ayler to the punk 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 Terry Callier. All the underground hits.
All Robert Görl tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Rhythim Is Rhythim 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 clarinet and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Peter & Gordon record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Soft Cell,
Mandrill,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
8 Eyed Spy,
Bad Manners,
The United States of America,
KRS-One,
Crooked Eye,
The Toasters,
Isaac Hayes,
Thompson Twins,
Roxy Music,
Donald Byrd,
Carl Craig,
PIL,
Sunsets and Hearts,
Wolf Eyes,
Los Fastidios,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
The Doobie Brothers,
the Germs,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Malaria!,
Frankie Knuckles,
Lightning Bolt,
The Barracudas,
Be Bop Deluxe,
The Birthday Party,
The Human League,
Deadbeat,
the Association,
Circle Jerks,
The Electric Prunes,
Wally Richardson,
Hashim,
The Stooges,
The Selecter,
Angry Samoans,
Faraquet,
Severed Heads,
Accadde A,
Soul Sonic Force,
Soulsonic Force,
Lindisfarne,
Jandek,
Todd Terry,
Lyres,
Royal Trux,
Babytalk,
The J.B.'s,
Ronan,
The Sound,
Toni Rubio,
kango's stein massive,
Peter and Kerry,
Sällskapet,
Black Flag,
The Divine Comedy,
ABC,
Man Parrish,
Moby Grape, Moby Grape, Moby Grape, Moby Grape.
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.