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 Venezuela and from London.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
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 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Jakarta and Cairo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Lagos 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the sitar 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 Larry & the Blue Notes 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 Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band. All the underground hits.
All Boogie Down Productions tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Five Americans record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rap 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 harpsichord and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Nation of Ulysses record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a linndrum.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Drexciya,
Fear,
The Wake,
Grandmaster Flash,
Steve Hackett,
Blake Baxter,
DNA,
Skaos,
Slick Rick,
Amon Düül II,
The Pop Group,
Grey Daturas,
Urselle,
Bauhaus,
The Vogues,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
The J.B.'s,
Tears for Fears,
Moebius,
Jeff Mills,
Black Pus,
the Slits,
Robert Hood,
Stetsasonic,
Agent Orange,
Selector Dub Narcotic,
The Young Rascals,
Aswad,
The Busters,
a-ha,
Davy DMX,
The Smiths,
Unrelated Segments,
Trumans Water,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Connie Case,
Robert Wyatt,
The Moleskins,
E-Dancer,
Parry Music,
Charles Mingus,
Joe Smooth,
Eurythmics,
Dark Day,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Ossler,
The Martian,
ABC,
Grauzone,
Mission of Burma,
Pharoah Sanders,
The Zeros,
Peter and Kerry,
Mars,
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme,
Howard Jones,
Rekid,
The Gap Band,
Stiv Bators,
Warren Ellis,
The Victims, The Victims, The Victims, The Victims.
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.