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 Moldova and from Manchester.
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 1965 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Glasgow and Madrid.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mumbai 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the theremin 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 The Kinks to the disco 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 The Litter. All the underground hits.
All Fort Wilson Riot tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Darondo record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a sitar and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Bobby Hutcherson record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
A Certain Ratio,
Fatback Band,
The Leaves,
Prince Buster,
EPMD,
Gang Gang Dance,
Pole,
Nas,
Inner City,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Donald Byrd,
Lower 48,
Bush Tetras,
Lindisfarne,
Sound Behaviour,
Slick Rick,
Rakim,
Monks,
Moebius,
Iggy Pop,
Peter and Kerry,
These Immortal Souls,
Quantec,
Technova,
Major Organ And The Adding Machine,
The Fall,
Jacques Brel,
Oneida,
Section 25,
The Offenders,
Ludus,
The Golliwogs,
Public Enemy,
Stockholm Monsters,
Marcia Griffiths,
The Human League,
Basic Channel,
the Swans,
Scion,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Glenn Branca,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
48th St. Collective,
Jeff Lynne,
Unrelated Segments,
Monolake,
Derrick Morgan,
Trumans Water,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Ten City,
Tommy Roe,
B.T. Express,
Skarface,
Minny Pops,
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds,
Bobby Sherman,
Matthew Halsall,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
The Mojo Men,
Lebanon Hanover, Lebanon Hanover, Lebanon Hanover, Lebanon Hanover.
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.