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 Morocco and from Copenhagen.
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 1965 to 1971.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Hong Kong and Lyon.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Delhi 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 1962 at the first Guess Who practice in a loft in Winnipeg.
I was working on the clarinet 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 Sister Nancy to the crunk kids.
I played it at the Hacienda.
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 The Wake. All the underground hits.
All Accadde A tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every Junior Murvin record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal crunk hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a linndrum and a mellotron and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Remains record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your güiro and bought a clarinet.
I hear that you and your band have sold your clarinet and bought a güiro.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
The Dave Clark Five,
Average White Band,
Tropical Tobacco,
Marvin Gaye,
the Slits,
Scan 7,
Spoonie Gee,
48th St. Collective,
Heaven 17,
The Fuzztones,
Danielle Patucci,
Fat Boys,
Neil Young,
The Mummies,
Fifty Foot Hose,
Shoche,
It's A Beautiful Day,
The Vogues,
Crime,
Altered Images,
Mars,
Vainqueur,
Crispian St. Peters,
The Raincoats,
Lou Christie,
Gang Green,
Sly & The Family Stone,
Pharoah Sanders,
Gerry Rafferty,
Roxette,
Bobby Byrd,
Animal Collective,
Clear Light,
The Selecter,
Metal Thangz,
the Association,
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft,
Q65,
Grandmaster Flash,
Dorothy Ashby,
John Foxx,
Sun City Girls,
The New Christs,
Warsaw,
Eric Dolphy,
Spandau Ballet,
MC5,
Masters at Work,
Reagan Youth,
Gian Franco Pienzio,
Kurtis Blow,
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dog,
Pharaoh Sanders and the Fire Engines,
Livin' Joy,
Bobby Hutcherson,
Quadrant,
Sixth Finger,
Gastr Del Sol,
Model 500,
Stereo Dub,
New York Dolls,
Qualms,
Swell Maps,
Amazonics, Amazonics, Amazonics, Amazonics.
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.