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 Namibia and from Shanghai.
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 1960 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Delhi and Portland.
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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the chamberlin 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 Johnny Osbourne to the funk kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 Strawberry Alarm Clock tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Archie Shepp record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk 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 chamberlin and a clarinet and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a LL Cool J record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your organ and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought an organ.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Vogues,
The Real Kids,
Nico,
Minny Pops,
Youth Brigade,
The Star Department,
Metal Thangz,
Archie Shepp,
Flamin' Groovies,
Harry Pussy,
Shuggie Otis,
Soft Cell,
Cal Tjader,
The Searchers,
It's A Beautiful Day,
Eric Dolphy,
The Detroit Cobras,
Drive Like Jehu,
Johnny Clarke,
Neu!,
Harpers Bizarre,
Rod Modell,
Scientists,
The Angels of Light,
Avey Tare,
New Order,
Nik Kershaw,
Quando Quango,
MDC,
The Buckinghams,
Monks,
Pharoah Sanders,
Tommy Roe,
The Toasters,
Magazine,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
In Retrospect,
Freddie Wadling,
LL Cool J,
John Cale,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Livin' Joy,
Tom Boy,
Soul II Soul,
Camberwell Now,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
Dennis Brown,
Todd Terry,
Marc Almond,
The Techniques,
Mad Mike,
Bill Near,
Boogie Down Productions,
Dave Gahan,
Joyce Sims,
Brick,
The Martian,
Ultramagnetic MC's,
Joe Finger,
Scion,
Sun Ra,
The Fugs,
Marshall Jefferson,
The Wake, The Wake, The Wake, The Wake.
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.