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 Uruguay and from Glasgow.
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 1962 to 1978.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Beijing and Edmonton.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manchester 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 Human League practice in a loft in Sheffield.
I was working on the theremin sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds to the funk kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 the Human League. All the underground hits.
All Echospace tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Skarface record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal techno 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 chamberlin and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Jimmy McGriff record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your spring reverb and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a spring reverb.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Cosmic Jokers,
Joy Division,
Arab on Radar,
Organ,
Gang Gang Dance,
Brothers Johnson,
Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan,
Reagan Youth,
Amon Düül,
Erykah Badu,
Babytalk,
The Fire Engines,
Notorious BIG live in Amsterdam,
Alton Ellis,
The Vogues,
Black Pus,
Technova,
U.S. Maple,
Peter & Gordon,
Infiniti,
Camouflage,
Wolf Eyes,
Stereo Dub,
The Neon Judgement,
Pet Shop Boys,
The Human League,
Matthew Bourne,
Black Moon,
The Busters,
Marvin Gaye,
The Beau Brummels,
Boogie Down Productions,
Arcadia,
Silicon Teens,
The Associates,
Sun City Girls,
Newcleus,
Nils Olav,
Sad Lovers and Giants,
Gichy Dan,
Crash Course in Science,
EPMD,
Rekid,
Eric Dolphy,
DeepChord presents Echospace,
Bobby Womack,
Bronski Beat,
Sugar Minott,
Mo-Dettes,
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Kenny Larkin,
Lindisfarne,
Roxette,
Dennis Brown,
The Martian,
Heavy D & The Boyz,
Jerry's Kids,
Porter Ricks,
Avey Tare,
Funky Four + One,
Fela Kuti,
Qualms, Qualms, Qualms, Qualms.
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.