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 Iraq and from Johannesburg.
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 1960 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Copenhagen and Manila.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Salvador 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 1968 at the first Can practice in a loft in Cologne.
I was working on the theremin 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 Tres Demented to the crunk 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 Lalann. All the underground hits.
All Livin' Joy tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Gong 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 '70s cut and another box set from the '90s.
I hear you're buying a 808 and an arpeggiator and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Lizzy Mercier Descloux record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your snare and bought a sitar.
I hear that you and your band have sold your sitar and bought a snare.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The American Breed,
The United States of America,
The Smoke,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Curtis Mayfield,
Eve St. Jones,
Sixth Finger,
Funky Four + One,
LL Cool J,
Magma,
the Fania All-Stars,
Depeche Mode,
The Sonics,
Vladislav Delay,
Be Bop Deluxe,
Marine Girls,
Junior Murvin,
Rufus Thomas,
Flamin' Groovies,
Marc Romboy vs. Booka Shade,
Matthew Halsall,
Tres Demented,
Jeff Lynne,
ABBA,
London Community Gospel Choir,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk,
Jeff Mills,
Erasure,
Bang on a Can All-Stars,
Underground Resistance,
Rhythm & Sound,
Henry Cow,
Groovy Waters,
the Soft Cell,
Dave Gahan,
Schoolly D,
Piero Umiliani,
The Wake,
Davy DMX,
K-Klass,
Moby Grape,
Blancmange,
Ohio Players,
In Retrospect,
UT,
Technova,
Zero Boys,
Sarah Menescal,
The Barracudas,
Anakelly,
Delta 5,
Anthony Braxton,
Massinfluence,
Franke,
Gang of Four,
Patti Smith,
The Royal Family And The Poor,
The Fugs,
Porter Ricks,
New York Dolls,
Boz Scaggs,
The Seeds,
The Residents,
The Selecter, The Selecter, The Selecter, The Selecter.
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.