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 Norway and from Jakarta.
But I was there.
I was there in 1968.
I was there at the first Bowie show in Bromley.
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 1966 to 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Bologna and Madrid.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Jakarta 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 arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Holger Czukay 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 June Days to the punk kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 E-Dancer. All the underground hits.
All Goldenarms tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every N.O.R.E. Featuring Pharrell 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Suburban Knight record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a harpsichord.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a marimba.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Black Flag,
John Coltrane,
The Sound,
Monolake,
U.S. Maple,
Barry Ungar,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
EPMD,
the Slits,
Shoche,
The Saints,
H. Thieme,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Technova,
Ralphi Rosario,
Lee Hazlewood,
Frankie Knuckles,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
PIL,
Grandmaster Flash,
Yusef Lateef,
New Age Steppers,
Bobby Womack,
Japan,
Minor Threat,
Bizarre Inc.,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Tubeway Army,
The Motions,
Hashim,
Bauhaus,
Mantronix,
MDC,
Loose Ends,
Avey Tare,
Eric B and Rakim,
The Walker Brothers,
The Moleskins,
Fela Kuti,
Hoover,
Ponytail,
Mission of Burma,
Country Joe & The Fish,
Sarah Menescal,
Main Source,
The Monochrome Set,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Ossler,
Lyres,
Scrapy,
Susan Cadogan,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Roger Hodgson,
Blake Baxter,
CMW,
Essential Logic,
Sun Ra Arkestra,
Ornette Coleman,
Thee Headcoats,
The Pop Group,
Alison Limerick,
Sunsets and Hearts, Sunsets and Hearts, Sunsets and Hearts, Sunsets and Hearts.
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.