Old Enough to Forget

I was ten years old when I first heard Ian Thomas' "Painted Ladies" on my AM radio. I still really like the song, and throughout the '70s, he was the consummate singer-songwriter. Even his 1979 single "Pilot," which was equal parts irritating and cool with its quirky recorder (yes, a recorder) runs, was one I kind of liked but never really loved. However, when Ian performed it on SCTV with Bob and Doug (his brother Dave), it took on a second life. I knew Ian Thomas from many of his own songs, but also from the various covers of his material by artists ranging from Santana to Chicago. But it was Manfred Mann's Earth Band's retooling of "The Runner" that really floated my boat (oddly, I never did pick up a copy, and it is still on my list of things to look for one day). Fast forward to the summer of 1983, and I'm lining up to see Strange Brew , and in the opening credits, Ian Thomas delivers the title track, and it was a killer. It would ...