• June 17, 1996
• Vol. 45
• No. 24

Janis Ian

Society's Once-Troubled Child Finally Finds Peace

"I could understand your tears and your shame/ She called you 'boy' instead of your name." In a day when rock lyrics feature violent sexual images; it's hard to believe the furor caused by a tale of interracial love. But "Society's Child," the 1967 hit written by a 14-year-old East Orange, N.J., schoolgirl, pushed buttons. Although she was embraced by folk-rock as a female Bob Dylan, many radio stations refused to play "Child," and outraged adults heckled at the singer's concerts. "It was a microcosm of people's fear," says Ian, 45. "It was terrifying for me." Yet through a turbulent career, Ian never has shied from controversy, taking on such themes as child molestation ("Uncle Wonderful," '83) and battered women ("His Hands," '93). The price of passion, though, has been high. Confused by the sudden success of "Child" and the backlash that followed, she dropped out of high school and turned to drugs before seeking psychological help. At 27, Ian married Tino Sargo, a Portuguese writer who was, she says, an abusive husband. They separated in '83 and divorced five years later. Around the same time, the IRS put a $1.3 million lien on her property: Her trusted accountant had stolen her tax money (he died before she could sue him). While her peers coasted on residuals, Ian had to start over. She moved from L.A. to Nashville and cranked out tunes for others. With her '93 album Breaking Silence, Ian came out publicly as a lesbian. Later she began a monthly column about social issues for The Advocate, a gay and lesbian magazine. "She can be very funny," says executive editor Judy Wieder. "It's delicious." Money woes and identity crises behind her, Ian lives with her lover, Pat Snyder, a University of Tennessee law student, in a comfortable Nashville home. Last, year's album, Revenge, hasn't broken any records, but that's okay. "I've had the brass ring," she says. "It's great, but I don't want to get a charley, horse reaching for it."