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 Tehran.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Soft Boys show in Cambridge.
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 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Johannesburg and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Salvador 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 synthesizer sounds with much patience.
I was there when Lou Reed 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 Major Organ And The Adding Machine to the funk 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 Scott Walker + Sunn O))). All the underground hits.
All Con Funk Shun tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Deepchord 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 '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
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 Eli Mardock record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a sitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought a harpsichord.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Angry Samoans,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
The Smiths,
The Leaves,
Jerry Gold Smith,
the Fania All-Stars,
Ash Ra Tempel,
The Barracudas,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
A Flock of Seagulls,
Gregory Isaacs,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Technova,
Dual Sessions,
Liliput,
Scan 7,
Alison Limerick,
the Human League,
David McCallum,
Visionaries,LMNO, T- Love & Iriscience,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
EPMD,
The Dave Clark Five,
Anthony Braxton,
Thee Headcoats,
Pylon,
The New Christs,
Terry Callier,
The J.B.'s,
Spoonie Gee,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Fat Boys,
Chrome,
Metal Thangz,
Q65,
Gil Scott Heron,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Stiv Bators,
Minutemen,
Nico,
Pierre Henry,
Marc Almond,
The Electric Prunes,
Harry Pussy,
Sun City Girls,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
Glambeats Corp.,
Malaria!,
Jeff Mills,
Guru Guru,
Gastr Del Sol,
Notorious Big And Bone Thugs,
Erykah Badu,
Can,
Saccharine Trust,
Boogie Down Productions,
Jeff Lynne,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Icehouse,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Swans,
Yusef Lateef, Yusef Lateef, Yusef Lateef, Yusef Lateef.
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.