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 Taiwan 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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Taipei and Portland.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Calgary 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 808 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 Bill Wells to the electroclash kids.
I played it at Trash.
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 DNA. All the underground hits.
All Cheater Slicks tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Residents record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal electroclash hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a snare and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Spoonie Gee record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a harpsichord.
I hear that you and your band have sold your harpsichord and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
Niagra,
The Litter,
The Searchers,
Alison Limerick,
Gang Green,
Jandek,
Howard Jones,
Roy Ayers,
Symarip,
The Motions,
the Association,
Sunsets and Hearts,
The Electric Prunes,
K-Klass,
Barbara Tucker,
New Age Steppers,
Whodini,
Motorama,
Man Eating Sloth,
The Slackers,
Porter Ricks,
Scott Walker,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Donny Hathaway,
Avey Tare,
the Slits,
Make Up,
Ultra Naté,
The Grass Roots,
Gong,
James Chance & The Contortions,
Chris & Cosey,
Traffic Nightmare,
Popol Vuh,
Agitation Free,
Minutemen,
Anakelly,
Johnny Clarke,
Pet Shop Boys,
8 Eyed Spy,
Rosa Yemen,
Sandy B,
Massinfluence,
Audionom,
Crooked Eye,
John Lydon,
Janne Schatter,
Sun Ra,
Fat Boys,
Connie Case,
Boz Scaggs,
Röyhkä ja Rättö ja Lehtisalo,
DJ Style,
The Durutti Column,
Absolute Body Control,
U.S. Maple,
Davy DMX,
Kayak,
The Gladiators,
The Standells, The Standells, The Standells, The Standells.
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.