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 Gabon and from Houston.
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 1968 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Calgary and Lagos.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Delhi 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 1976 at the first Wire practice in a loft in Watford.
I was working on the synthesizer sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Divine Comedy to the grunge kids.
I played it at the Crocodile.
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 Dorothy Ashby. All the underground hits.
All Letta Mbulu tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Excepter record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal jazz 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 an arpeggiator and a clarinet and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Technova record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a theremin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Sonics,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Second Layer,
Laurel Aitken,
Jerry Gold Smith,
Deadbeat,
Lizzy Mercier Descloux,
New York Dolls,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
The Seeds,
Can,
Brick,
Scientists,
The Standells,
Quantec,
Suburban Knight,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
The Smiths,
Godley & Creme,
Alphaville,
The Monochrome Set,
Jeff Mills,
Thompson Twins,
The Gap Band,
Bobby Byrd,
Big Daddy Kane,
Anakelly,
The Mummies,
Black Flag,
the Normal,
Eddi Front,
PIL,
Mantronix,
Curtis Mayfield,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Pylon,
Eurythmics,
48th St. Collective,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Camouflage,
Stetsasonic,
The Angels of Light,
Gichy Dan,
Spandau Ballet,
Girls At Our Best!,
Ice-T,
The Doors,
The Count Five,
Roxette,
Sarah Menescal,
The Techniques,
Sonic Youth,
Fela Kuti,
Al Stewart,
Los Fastidios,
Porter Ricks,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Tom Boy,
Ossler,
Kaleidoscope,
Nation of Ulysses,
the Fania All-Stars,
Zapp, Zapp, Zapp, Zapp.
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.