Rescued From The Fire: Awesome Tapes From Africa on Aaron Broomfield’s “I’m Gonna Miss Ya”

Internet travelers seeking authentic international sounds will most likely be familiar with Awesome Tapes from Africa. Its founder Brian Shimkovitz has devoted his energy to sharing sonic secrets lovingly unspooled from rare African cassettes. Whether featuring disco, boogie, funk, folk, jazz or mysterious, regional genres, he shines light on all the continent has to offer. Brian’s all-African-cassette DJ sets and vinyl reissues of obscure albums under the Awesome Tapes banner are extending the venture further. Now, for Rescued from the Fire, Shimkovitz opens the spectrum past Africa to reveal his deep love for a total dance floor shiner.

What record would you rescue from the fire?

Most people know me as an African tape guy. But I have been collecting records since even before I started listening to Grateful Dead tapes. The one record I would have to save from a fire would be Aaron Broomfield’s I’m Gonna Miss Ya. This record sums up all the things in dance music that sets me off most: soaring synths, cowbells, a multi-part vocal climax, funky breakdowns, left-fieldness. My record collection is mostly disco and boogie 12-inches but this one just kills me every time.

When I first moved to Brooklyn in 2005 I went through a long period of going to flea markets and that spot in Greenpoint The Thing. One dude who sold lots of common disco and R&B records at a flea market in Williamsburg every week somehow had this very rare Aaron Broomfield 12-inch for like $4. Some of his prices were way too high and others ended up being way too low. I had no idea what the record was, never heard of the label, it felt kind of mysterious. But I loved it and spent a lot of time just vibing to it. I never want this track to end when I am playing it. Now, after moving from NYC to Berlin and now to LA, my records are all stuck in storage. At times when I really miss my records, I think of this 12-inch with distinct longing.