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 Peru and from Accra.
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 1961 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Hong Kong and Milan.
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 1979 at the first Josef K practice in a loft in Edinburgh.
I was working on the chamberlin sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 Archie Shepp to the techno 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 Ajijia Myrayebe. All the underground hits.
All Sixth Finger tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Invisible record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a spring reverb and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Suicide record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a guitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a chamberlin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The New Christs,
China Crisis,
The Divine Comedy,
Faraquet,
Cecil Taylor,
Main Source,
The Tremeloes,
The Fugs,
The Angels of Light,
Public Enemy,
Tommy Roe,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Erykah Badu,
Radiopuhelimet,
A Certain Ratio,
Pharoah Sanders,
Buzzcocks,
Masters at Work,
Idris Muhammad,
James White and The Blacks,
Tres Demented,
Metal Thangz,
Morten Harket,
Fad Gadget,
Half Japanese,
Whodini,
Intrusion,
The Gladiators,
PIL,
Crash Course in Science,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Eurythmics,
Scion,
The Neon Judgement,
Technova,
Lou Reed,
Warsaw,
The Velvet Underground,
Gang Green,
Pierre Henry,
the Association,
Lalo Schifrin,
Newcleus,
The Litter,
Nils Olav,
Bobby Byrd,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Terrestrial Tones,
Mantronix,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
The Fortunes,
Dawn Penn,
Bizarre Inc.,
Sexual Harrassment,
It's A Beautiful Day,
The Count Five,
Agitation Free,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Stetsasonic,
Glambeats Corp.,
Kool Moe Dee,
The Last Poets, The Last Poets, The Last Poets, The Last Poets.
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.