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 Sri Lanka and from Taipei.
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 1960 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mumbai and Tokyo.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Shanghai 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 snare 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 Ralphi Rosario to the crunk 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 Stereo Dub. All the underground hits.
All Eric B and Rakim tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Scratch Acid record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a David McCallum record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought an oboe.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a guitar.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Ash Ra Tempel,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Ten City,
Teenage Jesus and the Jerks,
One Last Wish,
Selector Dub Narcotic,
Young Marble Giants,
Kas Product,
Pantytec,
Flipper,
ABBA,
Ohio Players,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Black Sheep,
DJ Sneak,
Niagra,
Brothers Johnson,
Cecil Taylor,
Yaz,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Josef K,
Kerri Chandler,
Simply Red,
The Golliwogs,
Don Cherry,
Angry Samoans,
Gang Starr,
Nation of Ulysses,
Jimmy McGriff,
Dawn Penn,
Deepchord,
Bill Near,
Barclay James Harvest,
Eyeless In Gaza,
Urselle,
Soft Machine,
Morten Harket,
The Wake,
MC5,
Nirvana,
Rosa Yemen,
The Beau Brummels,
Bootsy Collins,
Hardrive,
Public Image Ltd.,
Ludus,
Spandau Ballet,
Visage,
Jeru the Damaja,
E-Dancer,
Camberwell Now,
Flamin' Groovies,
Alison Limerick,
The Trojans,
Cymande,
The Dead C,
Hashim,
Lindisfarne,
Icehouse,
Rod Modell,
Kenny Larkin, Kenny Larkin, Kenny Larkin, Kenny Larkin.
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.