Tom Jans (February 9, 1948 – March 25, 1984) was an American folk singer-songwriter and guitarist from San Jose, California.
[1][3] Playing coffeehouses in San Francisco, Jans met Joan Baez, who introduced him to her sister Mimi Fariña in 1970.
[1] Fariña had begun writing new songs and was looking for a partner to perform them with; Jans seemed to be a similar collaborator and the two formed a new duo.
[1][4] The duo played San Francisco Bay Area clubs and received notice from their performance at the Big Sur Folk Festival.
[1] His first hit as a writer was the song "Loving Arms", initially recorded by Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge and then by Dobie Gray and Elvis Presley in 1973.
[1] 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.