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 Nigeria and from Mumbai.
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 1968 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Philadelphia and Accra.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Manila 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 1983 at the first Bronski Beat practice in a loft in Brixton.
I was working on the chamberlin 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 Siouxsie and the Banshees to the disco 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 Manfred Mann's Earth Band. All the underground hits.
All The Saints tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Charles Mingus 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 '90s.
I hear you're buying a rhodes and a guitar and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Procol Harum record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your theremin and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a theremin.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Jacob Miller,
Anthony Braxton,
Duran Duran,
Youth Brigade,
Janne Schatter,
Dave Gahan,
the Human League,
Accadde A,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Yellowson,
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band,
Pet Shop Boys,
Oblivians,
The Gories,
Loose Ends,
The New Christs,
Television Personalities,
Minor Threat,
The Grass Roots,
Urselle,
Kurtis Blow,
Lakeside,
Malaria!,
Junior Murvin,
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth,
Harpers Bizarre,
Agent Orange,
Jawbox,
The Litter,
Moebius,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
Spoonie Gee,
Bush Tetras,
The Velvet Underground,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Ice-T,
a-ha,
The Selecter,
Brick,
Lyres,
Easy Going,
Cheater Slicks,
Marshall Jefferson,
The Birthday Party,
Ponytail,
Darondo,
Babytalk,
Dorothy Ashby,
Letta Mbulu,
Nik Kershaw,
Public Enemy,
Audionom,
Smog,
John Coltrane,
Mission of Burma,
Section 25,
Public Image Ltd.,
Ash Ra Tempel,
Sonny Sharrock,
Faust,
X-101,
Reagan Youth, Reagan Youth, Reagan Youth, Reagan Youth.
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.