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 Gambia and from Johannesburg.
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 1962 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Beijing and Salvador.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manchester 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 1983 at the first Art of Noise practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 Banda Bassotti to the dance kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Stockholm Monsters. All the underground hits.
All Art Ensemble Of Chicago tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every DJ Sneak 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 '60s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a guitar and a rhodes and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
X-102,
Y Pants,
Outsiders,
The Angels of Light,
Traffic Nightmare,
The Busters,
Scan 7,
Erasure,
Eve St. Jones,
Half Japanese,
Whodini,
Amon Düül II,
Joe Smooth,
Spoonie Gee,
Sonny Sharrock,
Terrestrial Tones,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Rosa Yemen,
Sight & Sound,
Mark Hollis,
The Monks,
Arthur Verocai,
Cymande,
Stetsasonic,
Peter and Kerry,
Stereo Dub,
Roxette,
OOIOO,
Ronnie Foster,
Negative Approach,
The Fuzztones,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Tres Demented,
Soft Machine,
June of 44,
Masters at Work,
Joy Division,
Kevin Saunderson,
The Fire Engines,
Adolescents,
Radio Birdman,
Althea and Donna,
The Electric Prunes,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Dorothy Ashby,
Brass Construction,
Jeff Mills,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Organ,
Archie Shepp,
Public Enemy,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Carl Craig,
Chrome,
Joey Negro,
Patti Smith,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
The Trojans,
Basic Channel,
Ludus,
the Soft Cell,
The Happenings, The Happenings, The Happenings, The Happenings.
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.