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 Tanzania and from Edmonton.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Soft Boys show in Cambridge.
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 1968 to 1977.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Shanghai and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Winnipeg 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 1975 at the first Ubu practice in a loft in Cleveland.
I was working on the güiro 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 The Busters to the funk 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 Brick. All the underground hits.
All Rod Modell tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal techno hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '60s cut and another box set from the '70s.
I hear you're buying a marimba and a theremin and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a Ash Ra Tempel record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a chamberlin.
I hear that you and your band have sold your chamberlin and bought a clarinet.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Colin Newman,
DJ Style,
Second Layer,
Soft Machine,
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Hashim,
Harmonia,
Kauko Röyhkä ja Narttu,
Black Sheep,
the Sonics,
X-102,
B.T. Express,
Ultravox,
The Remains,
Spoonie Gee,
Easy Going,
Los Fastidios,
Cymande,
The Saints,
Soul Sonic Force,
Ossler,
Manfred Mann's Earth Band,
Marc Almond,
Strawberry Alarm Clock,
Eurythmics,
Fear,
Prince Buster,
Swell Maps,
Spandau Ballet,
Slick Rick,
Chrome,
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282,
Joe Finger,
Joe Smooth,
The Beau Brummels,
Pulsallama,
Excepter,
Super Lover Cee & Casanova Rud,
Morten Harket,
Soft Cell,
UT,
Oneida,
Young Marble Giants,
Marmalade,
Aloha Tigers,
Sonic Youth,
Art Ensemble Of Chicago,
Tomorrow,
Radiohead,
Pharoah Sanders,
Lalann,
Audionom,
Fugazi,
John Foxx,
Alice Coltrane,
Traffic Nightmare,
K-Klass,
The Gladiators,
Johnny Clarke,
The Leaves,
Glenn Branca,
Angry Samoans,
The Victims,
Joey Negro,
the Germs, the Germs, the Germs, the Germs.
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.