Rick James — Throwin' Down (1982) | Record Plant Sausalito Archive

Session

Type: Studio Session
Date Recorded: 1982

Archive note

DATE PRECISION: YEAR ONLY (1982) CENSUS 2026-06-06: VERIFIED — Recorded at Record Plant Studios, Sausalito, CA and Motown/Hitsville U.S.A. Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA. Mixed at Record Plant Studios, Sausalito, CA. Mastered at Allen Zentz Mastering, Los Angeles, CA. Sausalito credit appears explicitly and consistently across multiple worldwide pressings (Discogs r2574266, r1812207, r553668, r4992313, and others). Studio role: Recorded + Mixed. Sole mix studio was Record Plant Sausalito — Motown/Hitsville was tracking only. TOM FLYE: Discogs r553668 (US pressing) lists Tom Flye as Engineer, Recorded By, Mixed By — a direct house-engineer confirmation of Sausalito provenance. Additional engineer Bobby Brooks credited for recording. Mastered by Chris Bellman. PERSONNEL: Rick James (producer, arranger, nearly all instruments: clavinet, synthesizer, guitar, harmonica, Lynn drum machine, congas, timbales, timpani, bell tree, chimes, lead/backing vocals). Bass: Oscar Alston. Drums: Lanise Hughes. Bongos/congas/cowbell/snare/tambourine: Nate Hughes. Piano: Erskine Williams. Synthesizers/Rhodes/backing vocals: Levi Ruffin Jr. Horns/flute/sax/trumpet: Daniel LeMelle. NOTABLE GUEST APPEARANCES: Grace Slick (backing vocals, credited courtesy Grunt/RCA), The Temptations (David Ruffin, Dennis Edwards, Eddie Kendricks, Glenn Leonard, Melvin Franklin, Otis Williams, Richard Street), Narada Michael Walden, Roy Ayers, Gerald Albright, Jean Carn, Julia Waters Tillman, Maxine Waters Willard, John McFee. RELEASE: Gordy imprint of Motown Records. Released May 13, 1982. Peaked #13 on Billboard 200. RIAA Gold certified. Sixth studio album by Rick James; follow-up to Street Songs (1981). CONTEXT: This is the second confirmed Rick James album at Record Plant Sausalito — Street Songs (1981) is also in the archive. Both were produced entirely by James and engineered by Tom Flye, reflecting a consistent working relationship with the Sausalito studio during his commercial peak.