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 Palau and from Sao Paulo.
But I was there.
I was there in 1977.
I was there at the first Mistral show in Amsterdam.
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 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Spokane and Lille.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Houston 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 1968 at the first Can practice in a loft in Cologne.
I was working on the theremin sounds with much patience.
I was there when Tom Verlaine 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 Robert Wyatt to the rock kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 Gang Gang Dance. All the underground hits.
All Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Rod Modell record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal funk 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 clarinet and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Mark Hollis record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your linndrum and bought a güiro.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought a linndrum.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Spandau Ballet,
The Kinks,
Boogie Down Productions,
The Blackbyrds,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
The Fugs,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Basic Channel,
8 Eyed Spy,
Banda Bassotti,
Thee Headcoats,
Girls At Our Best!,
Radio Birdman,
The Star Department,
Avey Tare,
The Count Five,
Panda Bear,
Joe Smooth,
Liaisons Dangereuses,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Dark Day,
Pantytec,
Röyhkä ja Rättö ja Lehtisalo,
Audionom,
Iggy Pop,
The Walker Brothers,
Lungfish,
Maurizio,
Man Eating Sloth,
Black Bananas,
The Velvet Underground,
The Golliwogs,
Vladislav Delay,
The Dave Clark Five,
Eurythmics,
Aswad,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
The Busters,
Wire,
Malaria!,
Tommy Roe,
Masters at Work,
Joy Division,
Pagans,
The American Breed,
Susan Cadogan,
Radiohead,
The Moleskins,
The Litter,
The Zeros,
Marine Girls,
Leonard Cohen,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Average White Band,
Franke,
Davy DMX,
Spoonie Gee,
Letta Mbulu,
Drive Like Jehu,
Cymande,
The J.B.'s,
The Doors, The Doors, The Doors, The Doors.
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.