René Thomas (25 February 1927 – 3 January 1975) was a jazz guitarist from Belgium.
In the early 1950s, he moved to Paris and became part of the modern jazz scene, playing in the style of Jimmy Raney. Back in Europe in 1962, he toured and recorded with Chet Baker, Bobby Jaspar, Kenny Clarke, Eddy Louiss, Stan Getz, Lucky Thompson, Sonny Criss, Jacques Pelzer, Lou Bennett, Charles "Lolo" Bellonzi, and Ingfried Hoffmann. and John_McLaughlin played in his early career with Thomas.
Thomas died of a heart attack in Santander, Spain at the age of 47 on 3 January 1975.