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 Mozambique and from Lagos.
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 1969 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Lagos and Manila.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Paris 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 1978 at the first Visage practice in a loft in London.
I was working on the sitar 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 The Associates to the jazz 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 Ken Boothe. All the underground hits.
All the Bar-Kays tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal punk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a theremin and a linndrum and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Fad Gadget record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your synthesizer and bought a snare.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a synthesizer.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Lou Reed & John Cale,
Fela Kuti,
Roy Ayers,
Banda Bassotti,
the Sonics,
Erasure,
Nik Kershaw,
Lou Reed & Metallica,
Gerry Rafferty,
The Sonics,
Wings,
Funkadelic,
Duran Duran,
Anthony Braxton,
Chris & Cosey,
U.S. Maple,
B.T. Express,
Yellowson,
Motorama,
Graham Central Station,
The American Breed,
The Index,
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry,
Eddi Front,
The Victims,
Make Up,
Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks,
Soft Machine,
Robert Wyatt,
Larry & the Blue Notes,
Tim Buckley,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Inner City,
Adolescents,
the Slits,
Byron Stingily,
Liliput,
Susan Cadogan,
Cameo,
Soul Sonic Force,
Alton Ellis,
Bootsy Collins,
Roy Ayers Ubiquity,
Funky Four + One,
Jandek,
the Association,
The Cosmic Jokers,
Kas Product,
Rowland S Howard / Lydia Lunch,
Khruangbin,
Rapeman,
Tropical Tobacco,
Arab on Radar,
Gary Puckett & The Union Gap,
Blancmange,
Dawn Penn,
the Normal,
Deadbeat,
Agent Orange,
Joyce Sims,
Sun Ra Arkestra, Sun Ra Arkestra, Sun Ra Arkestra, Sun Ra Arkestra.
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.