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 Yemen and from Halifax.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Second Layer show in South London.
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 1967 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Johannesburg and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Milan 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 1980 at the first Cybotron practice in a loft in Detroit.
I was working on the guitar 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 Jesper Dahlbäck to the disco kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Lyres. All the underground hits.
All A Certain Ratio tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Jeff Lynne record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal disco hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '70s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a chamberlin and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Gabor Szabo record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
ABBA,
Ralphi Rosario,
Jeff Mills,
Interpol,
The Happenings,
Fifty Foot Hose,
the Normal,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Jacques Brel,
Lou Reed,
The Human League,
Sonic Youth,
The Moleskins,
Camouflage,
John Lydon,
Surgeon,
Intrusion,
Agent Orange,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Pierre Henry,
Scion,
Black Flag,
Inner City,
Negative Approach,
Trumans Water,
Aaron Thompson,
Funkadelic,
The Neon Judgement,
Gang Gang Dance,
Joe Finger,
Lyres,
The Flesh Eaters,
Byron Stingily,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Max Romeo,
Jandek,
Monks,
Cecil Taylor,
Mars,
Hashim,
The Zeros,
June Days,
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson,
Don Cherry,
Kurtis Blow,
Sixth Finger,
Charles Mingus,
L. Decosne,
The Move,
The Velvet Underground,
Subhumans,
The Birthday Party,
Easy Going,
The Offenders,
The Smiths,
Crispy Ambulance,
Soft Machine,
The Mummies,
Sällskapet,
Darondo,
Accadde A, Accadde A, Accadde A, Accadde A.
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.