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 Romania and from Copenhagen.
But I was there.
I was there in 1983.
I was there at the first Bronski Beat show in Brixton.
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 1965 to 1970.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Toronto and Manchester.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Seoul 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 Josef K practice in a loft in Edinburgh.
I was working on the oboe sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart 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 Evens to the rap kids.
I played it at the Roxy.
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 Gary Puckett & The Union Gap. All the underground hits.
All Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Sun Ra Arkestra 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying an arpeggiator and a chamberlin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Mantronix record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your mellotron and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a mellotron.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Ronnie Foster,
Iggy Pop,
Guru Guru,
The Techniques,
The Busters,
X-102,
Isaac Hayes,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Kevin Saunderson,
Dorothy Ashby,
Archie Shepp,
The Smoke,
Selector Dub Narcotic,
Soul II Soul,
Wally Richardson,
Crooked Eye,
Sight & Sound,
Amazonics,
June Days,
Second Layer,
Alison Limerick,
JFA,
Theoretical Girls,
Thee Headcoats,
Babytalk,
Ice-T,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
The Cowsills,
Roxy Music,
Easy Going,
Peter and Kerry,
Hot Snakes,
Neil Young,
Bootsy's Rubber Band,
Slick Rick,
Television Personalities,
Hardrive,
AZ,
Fela Kuti,
Graham Central Station,
Judy Mowatt,
Black Moon,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
Fort Wilson Riot,
Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx,
Jeff Lynne,
Rotary Connection,
Bobbi Humphrey,
Ornette Coleman,
Mary Jane Girls,
Japan,
Louis and Bebe Barron,
The Birthday Party,
The Fuzztones,
Vaughan Mason & Crew,
Make Up,
The Walker Brothers,
The Skatalites,
Tommy Roe,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Popol Vuh,
Infiniti, Infiniti, Infiniti, Infiniti.
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.