Tom Jans

The son of a farmer, Tom Jans was raised near San Jose. Jans's paternal grandmother had been involved in music, playing in the Rocky Mountain Five jazz group. His influences ranged from Hank Williams to flamenco (his mother was from Spain) to the Beatles. == Career ==

Playing coffeehouses in San Francisco, Jans met Joan Baez, who introduced him to her sister Mimi Fariña in 1970. Fariña had achieved cult status as part of a duo with her late husband Richard Fariña. The album was produced by Mentor Williams and featured guitarists Lonnie Mack and Troy Seals. However, the record was a commercial failure and Jans opted to relocate to Los Angeles. After a period of isolation, Jans released a second album, The Eyes of an Only Child, on Columbia Records in 1975, executive produced by Lowell George. The album featured his song "Out of Hand", which later became a country hit for Gary Stewart. The song "Struggle in Darkness" was also a minor hit on FM radio, but the album was not a commercial success. His next album on Columbia Records, Dark Blonde (1976), also did not generate high sales, and Jans moved to Europe. When the Columbia releases failed to find an audience, his career lost momentum and although Jans continued to perform, he issued no recordings until 1982's Champion, a Don Grusin-produced album that was released in Japan only. == Death and legacy ==

Jans suffered serious injuries, especially to his kidneys, in a motorcycle accident in 1983. Tom Waits dedicated a song to Jans, whom he and his wife had befriended, "Whistle Down the Wind (For Tom Jans)" from Bone Machine. Waits said of the song, "It was written about another friend, but it was the kind of song that Tom Jans would have written. He was there in spirit". ==References==