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 Australia and from Cairo.
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 1961 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lyon and Taipei.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Sao Paulo 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 Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Mo-Dettes to the punk 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 Blackbyrds. All the underground hits.
All La Düsseldorf tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Kerri Chandler record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying an organ and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bang On A Can record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a rhodes.
I hear that you and your band have sold your rhodes and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Cowsills,
Gang Starr,
Crime,
The Standells,
Wolf Eyes,
Johnny Osbourne,
The Toasters,
Bizarre Inc.,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Heaven 17,
Amon Düül II,
EPMD,
Cluster,
Deakin,
The Cramps,
Neil Young,
Chrome,
Visage,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
The Young Rascals,
Glambeats Corp.,
Animal Collective,
Goldenarms,
The Monochrome Set,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Public Enemy,
Lakeside,
The Birthday Party,
Mr. Review,
The Residents,
Bob Dylan,
The Modern Lovers,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Techniques,
Patti Smith,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Lower 48,
X-Ray Spex,
Reuben Wilson,
Monolake,
Kayak,
Ultravox,
Sun City Girls,
Soulsonic Force,
Rod Modell,
Hoover,
Mars,
China Crisis,
Ossler,
Minor Threat,
A Certain Ratio,
Donny Hathaway,
Funkadelic,
Bill Wells,
Arthur Verocai,
The Red Krayola,
Eve St. Jones,
Theoretical Girls,
Radiohead,
The Selecter,
Masters at Work, Masters at Work, Masters at Work, Masters at Work.
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.