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 Burkina and from Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1979.
I was there at the first Josef K show in Edinburgh.
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 1976.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Calgary and Milan.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school New York 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 clarinet sounds with much patience.
I was there when Donald Fagen 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 Mandrill to the grunge kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Dead Boys. All the underground hits.
All Rod Modell tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Kevin Saunderson 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Lou Reed & Metallica record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a spring reverb.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
In Retrospect,
Funky Four + One,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Eric B and Rakim,
Cybotron,
Metal Thangz,
The Selecter,
OOIOO,
Minor Threat,
Brothers Johnson,
Crime,
Marine Girls,
Royal Trux,
Thee Headcoats,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
The Gun Club,
Gastr Del Sol,
Barbara Tucker,
Zero Boys,
Hasil Adkins,
The New Christs,
Alton Ellis,
The Trojans,
Scion,
Mo-Dettes,
Soul II Soul,
Radio Birdman,
Duran Duran,
The Monks,
Arcadia,
ABC,
Harry Pussy,
Babytalk,
Aloha Tigers,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Sugar Minott,
U.S. Maple,
Franke,
Sun Ra,
The Divine Comedy,
Parry Music,
Skriet,
Q and Not U,
Byron Stingily,
Eurythmics,
Rapeman,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
F. McDonald,
Bobby Womack,
Joe Finger,
The Birthday Party,
Little Man,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Clear Light,
Letta Mbulu,
Interpol,
Black Bananas,
Jimmy McGriff,
Slick Rick,
Boogie Down Productions,
The Slackers,
Desert Stars,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Banda Bassotti,
The Count Five, The Count Five, The Count Five, The Count Five.
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.