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 Turkmenistan and from Sao Paulo.
But I was there.
I was there in 1984.
I was there at the first Arcadia show in London.
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 1967 to 1973.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Bologna 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 1971 at the first Big Star practice in a loft in Memphis.
I was working on the marimba 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 Grandmaster Flash to the funk kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
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 Lafayette Afro Rock Band. All the underground hits.
All X-101 tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Soft Cell record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal grunge 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 an organ and a 808 and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Teenage Jesus and the Jerks record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Sly & The Family Stone,
The Star Department,
Colin Newman,
Skarface,
The Sonics,
The Jesus and Mary Chain,
10cc,
Heaven 17,
The Birthday Party,
Stereo Dub,
the Bar-Kays,
Public Enemy,
Angels of Light & Akron/Family,
Echospace,
Siouxsie and the Banshees,
Newcleus,
Yellowson,
Pharoah Sanders,
Neu!,
Nik Kershaw,
Nico,
Tropical Tobacco,
Whodini,
D'Angelo,
Excepter,
Ludus,
Fad Gadget,
Soul II Soul,
Tomorrow,
Aaron Thompson,
Faust,
Sparks,
Audionom,
Sam Rivers,
The Saints,
Radiohead,
David McCallum,
Traffic Nightmare,
Eurythmics,
Dawn Penn,
Gang of Four,
Babytalk,
Soul Sonic Force,
The Shadows of Knight,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Mark Hollis,
Amazonics,
Youth Brigade,
Tommy Roe,
Matthew Halsall,
Flash Fearless,
Joe Finger,
The Fire Engines,
In Retrospect,
Los Fastidios,
Bobbi Humphrey,
The Stooges,
The Toasters,
Brass Construction,
Lou Christie,
Alton Ellis,
Parry Music,
Gang Green, Gang Green, Gang Green, Gang Green.
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.