Tony Thomas

Tony Thomas (also known as Tony "Strat" Thomas), (born June 2, 1959 – February 6, 2022) was an American funk and rock guitarist from Highland Park, Michigan U.S., and was best known for his work with George Clinton, Parliament, and the P-Funk All-Stars. Thomas also recorded extensively with Muruga Booker, and was a guitarist in Muruga Cosmic Boogie and Muruga Blues All-Stars. As a teenager, Thomas fell in love with the sound of the Fender Stratocaster guitar, and his mother eventually bought him one, earning him the nickname "Strat" ever since. He quickly learned how to play and he soon joined a Detroit, Michigan reggae band called Onyx. In 1979, Thomas and Donnie Sterling formed a P-Funk offspring group called Sterling Silver Starship, and an album was recorded, but was never released. Thomas and Sterling left Sterling Silver Starship in 1981 and formed a group, Kiddo, and they recorded a self-titled album that was released by A&M Records. In 1982 Thomas played guitar on George Clinton's first solo recording project Computer Games, which included the hit songs Atomic Dog and Loopzilla. Thomas went on to record through the 1980s with P-Funk, and was featured on many of their biggest-selling records.