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 Saudi Arabia and from Philadelphia.
But I was there.
I was there in 1978.
I was there at the first Visage 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 1965 to 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Sao Paulo and Calgary.
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 1970 at the first Onyeabor practice in a loft in Enugu.
I was working on the 808 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 Gong to the disco kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 Jacques Brel. All the underground hits.
All Slick Rick tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Jesper Dahlbäck record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a harpsichord and a snare and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Scrapy record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your guitar and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a guitar.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Stetsasonic,
David McCallum,
Model 500,
Gil Scott Heron,
Avey Tare,
Radiopuhelimet,
CMW,
Pharoah Sanders,
Rhythim Is Rhythim,
Gang of Four,
Jesper Dahlback,
The Litter,
Peter & Gordon,
Agitation Free,
Dorothy Ashby,
Mandrill,
Derrick Morgan,
The Doobie Brothers,
Fela Kuti,
Icehouse,
Camberwell Now,
Freddie Wadling,
Rekid,
Fad Gadget,
Moby Grape,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Jeff Mills,
James White and The Blacks,
Iggy Pop,
Josef K,
Make Up,
Los Fastidios,
Public Image Ltd.,
Sister Nancy,
Marvin Gaye,
Susan Cadogan,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Howard Jones,
Youth Brigade,
Metal Thangz,
Grandmaster Flash,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Amon Düül II,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Bobby Hutcherson,
Jacques Brel,
Fugazi,
David Bowie,
Monks,
Joensuu 1685,
The Detroit Cobras,
8 Eyed Spy,
The Zeros,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Gang Starr,
Erykah Badu,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
Patti Smith,
Joy Division,
The Dirtbombs, The Dirtbombs, The Dirtbombs, The Dirtbombs.
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.