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 Tanzania and from Beijing.
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 Tokyo and Lyon.
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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the güiro sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie 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 Junior Murvin to the crunk 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 Happenings. All the underground hits.
All Gang Gang Dance tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Von Mondo record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash 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 sitar and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Moody Blues record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a 808.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Notorious BIG live in Amsterdam,
The Zeros,
Mission of Burma,
The Alarm Clocks,
Scan 7,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Accadde A,
Lalann,
Flamin' Groovies,
Dead Boys,
Funky Four + One,
Tommy Roe,
Carl Craig,
The Slackers,
Jacques Brel,
Swell Maps,
The Vogues,
Scion,
T. Rex,
The Wake,
Joy Division,
Ultra Naté,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
Toni Rubio,
Deepchord,
Parry Music,
Charles Mingus,
Half Japanese,
Crime,
Cluster,
The New Christs,
Drive Like Jehu,
Slick Rick,
Lebanon Hanover,
Essential Logic,
The J.B.'s,
Moby Grape,
Michelle Simonal,
Isaac Hayes,
The Monochrome Set,
Man Parrish,
Soul II Soul,
These Immortal Souls,
Josef K,
Boogie Down Productions,
Danielle Patucci,
Television Personalities,
Amon Düül II,
Cabaret Voltaire,
Malaria!,
Neil Young,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
The Gap Band,
U.S. Maple,
Sonic Youth,
Brass Construction,
Alton Ellis,
Rapeman,
Angry Samoans,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Roger Hodgson,
Deakin,
Yusef Lateef, Yusef Lateef, Yusef Lateef, Yusef Lateef.
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.