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 China and from Jakarta.
But I was there.
I was there in 1971.
I was there at the first Neu! show in Düsseldorf.
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 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Manila and Philadelphia.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Columbus 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 1965 at the first Beefheart practice in a loft in Lancaster.
I was working on the rhodes sounds with much patience.
I was there when Michael McDonald 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 Nils Olav to the punk 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 The Gap Band. All the underground hits.
All Swans tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Invisible 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and a harpsichord and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Mark Hollis record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a marimba.
I hear that you and your band have sold your marimba and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Ornette Coleman,
DNA,
Anthony Braxton,
Funky Four + One,
Jacques Brel,
Alphaville,
Judy Mowatt,
Wings,
Magazine,
Fatback Band,
Guru Guru,
The Slits,
Lou Reed,
the Fania All-Stars,
Kevin Saunderson,
Angry Samoans,
The Vogues,
The Chocolate Watch Band,
Ituana,
Cheater Slicks,
Ludus,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Duran Duran,
The Buckinghams,
DJ Sneak,
Minnie Riperton,
Quadrant,
Nation of Ulysses,
Oppenheimer Analysis,
Niagra,
Donny Hathaway,
X-102,
Moss Icon,
Andrew Hill,
The Offenders,
Girls At Our Best!,
Sparks,
Joyce Sims,
The Five Americans,
Kas Product,
Zero Boys,
Avey Tare,
the Swans,
Chrome,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Ken Boothe,
The Detroit Cobras,
Radiohead,
Roy Ayers,
Oblivians,
Rod Modell,
Joy Division,
Skaos,
Hasil Adkins,
Tropical Tobacco,
Minny Pops,
a-ha,
The New Christs,
David Bowie,
Crash Course in Science,
Scott Walker,
Todd Terry,
Animal Collective, Animal Collective, Animal Collective, Animal Collective.
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.