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 India and from Manila.
But I was there.
I was there in 1977.
I was there at the first Zapp show in Hamilton.
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 1979.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mexico City and Beijing.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Beijing 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 1979 at the first Second Layer practice in a loft in South London.
I was working on the arpeggiator sounds with much patience.
I was there when Robert Palmer 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 Brass Construction to the jazz kids.
I played it at the Spitz.
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 Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx. All the underground hits.
All Fat Boys tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Amon Düül II record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a güiro and a synthesizer and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Johnny Clarke record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a sitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Jeff Lynne,
The Peanut Butter Conspiracy,
The Blackbyrds,
Lebanon Hanover,
Lafayette Afro Rock Band,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Pere Ubu,
Henry Cow,
DNA,
De La Soul & Jungle Brothers,
The Blues Magoos,
The Last Poets,
Second Layer,
The Move,
Aswad,
Lungfish,
Bob Dylan,
The Barracudas,
Leonard Cohen,
Bang On A Can,
Das Ding,
Liliput,
Monks,
Coldchain, Rosco P., Featuring Pusha T from Clipse & Boo-Bonic,
Donald Byrd,
Selector Dub Narcotic,
The New Christs,
Stiv Bators,
Pharoah Sanders,
Electric Prunes,
Tropical Tobacco,
Sarah Menescal,
John Holt,
A Certain Ratio,
Minutemen,
Eric Copeland,
Flash Fearless,
Skaos,
Blake Baxter,
Davy DMX,
Marvin Gaye,
Chris & Cosey,
Richard Hell and the Voidoids,
The Sonics,
Jawbox,
Reagan Youth,
Absolute Body Control,
Dead Boys,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Harry Pussy,
Motorama,
Prince Buster,
the Fania All-Stars,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Gichy Dan,
Bill Near,
Alison Limerick,
Roxette,
Archie Shepp,
Khruangbin,
Siouxsie and the Banshees,
Bootsy Collins,
Kayak, Kayak, Kayak, Kayak.
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.