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 Antigua and from Stockholm.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Art of Noise show in 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 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Houston and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Mexico City 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 1977 at the first Zapp practice in a loft in Hamilton.
I was working on the rhodes sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Busters to the rap kids.
I played it at Cafe Wha.
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 Japan. All the underground hits.
All Glenn Branca tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Scan 7 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 '60s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a sitar and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Basic Channel record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Oneida,
Bootsy Collins,
The Knickerbockers,
Kings Of Tomorrow,
Drexciya,
Bluetip,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Sonny Sharrock,
Cecil Taylor,
The Gun Club,
Clear Light,
the Normal,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Soul II Soul,
Siglo XX,
Kenny Larkin,
Dead Boys,
Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane,
Lungfish,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Roxette,
The Human League,
Gang Gang Dance,
Circle Jerks,
Mr. Review,
Laurel Aitken,
John Coltrane,
Albert Ayler,
the Slits,
Kool Moe Dee,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Crime,
The Victims,
Wolf Eyes,
Flipper,
Funky Four + One,
Con Funk Shun,
Hasil Adkins,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
The Doors,
Lee Hazlewood,
Peter & Gordon,
Soulsonic Force,
The Dirtbombs,
Davy DMX,
Newcleus,
F. McDonald,
Deepchord,
Harpers Bizarre,
Popol Vuh,
The Grass Roots,
The Cramps,
Easy Going,
Porter Ricks,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Man Parrish,
Cymande, Cymande, Cymande, Cymande.
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.