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 Yemen and from Jakarta.
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 1960 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Tehran and Shanghai.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Copenhagen 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 1973 at the first Television practice in a loft in New York.
I was working on the 808 sounds with much patience.
I was there when Nile Rodgers 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 Pop Group to the electroclash kids.
I played it at the 40 Watt.
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 In Retrospect. All the underground hits.
All Rhythm & Sound tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Subhumans record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal rock hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '50s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a clarinet and an oboe and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Public Image Ltd. record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a güiro.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Amon Düül II,
Talk Talk,
The Standells,
The Victims,
Sad Lovers and Giants,
Whodini,
The Mojo Men,
Johnny Osbourne,
Harpers Bizarre,
Skriet,
R.M.O.,
The Remains,
The Smoke,
Sly & The Family Stone,
The Vogues,
The Stooges,
Angry Samoans,
Thompson Twins,
Lindisfarne,
Television Personalities,
B.T. Express,
Agent Orange,
The Selecter,
Todd Rundgren,
Ten City,
the Slits,
The Cowsills,
Icehouse,
The United States of America,
Fela Kuti,
The Trojans,
Excepter,
DNA,
The Birthday Party,
Royal Trux,
F. McDonald,
Index,
the Sonics,
Fugazi,
Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish,
Radiopuhelimet,
Jeff Mills,
Surgeon,
Lou Reed,
Yazoo,
Letta Mbulu,
Buzzcocks,
Peter Gordon & Love of Life Orchestra,
Crispy Ambulance,
Bill Wells,
Warsaw,
Youth Brigade,
Camberwell Now,
Groovy Waters,
Kas Product,
Judy Mowatt,
Erasure,
Chrome,
Nas,
This Heat,
Erykah Badu, Erykah Badu, Erykah Badu, Erykah Badu.
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.