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 Estonia and from Manchester.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Bronski Beat show in Brixton.
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 1961 to 1974.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Tehran and Delhi.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Glasgow 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 1967 at the first Rodriguez practice in a loft in Detroit.
I was working on the marimba sounds with much patience.
I was there when David Bowie 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 The Men They Couldn't Hang to the punk kids.
I played it at the Astoria.
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 Charles Mingus. All the underground hits.
All Junior Murvin tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every the Fania All-Stars record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Colin Newman record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your oboe and bought a harpsichord.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought an oboe.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Tubeway Army,
Half Japanese,
Livin' Joy,
Aaron Thompson,
Kevin Saunderson,
The Cowsills,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Alice Coltrane,
Pierre Henry,
Negative Approach,
The Gap Band,
Bronski Beat,
Lucky Dragons,
Kango’s Stein Massive,
Ralphi Rosario,
The Star Department,
the Sonics,
Soft Cell,
Maurizio,
Ten City,
The Techniques,
Sam Rivers,
DNA,
Das Ding,
Fela Kuti,
Bush Tetras,
Black Sheep,
Marcia Griffiths,
Hoover,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Frankie Knuckles,
Public Image Ltd.,
Ajijia Myrayebe,
Rhythm & Sound,
the Human League,
Royal Trux,
Duran Duran,
Neil Young & Crazy Horse,
Judy Mowatt,
Archie Shepp,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Absolute Body Control,
Harpers Bizarre,
The Index,
Supertramp,
Desert Stars,
The Standells,
The Five Americans,
Con Funk Shun,
Roy Ayers,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
These Immortal Souls,
New Age Steppers,
Gregory Isaacs,
David Axelrod,
Tropical Tobacco,
A Flock of Seagulls,
La Düsseldorf,
Rakim,
Ornette Coleman,
June of 44,
The Toasters,
Laurel Aitken, Laurel Aitken, Laurel Aitken, Laurel Aitken.
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.