Cleo Laine (born October 28, 1927, Southall,Middlesex, England) is a British singer and actress who mastered a variety of styles but is best known as the “Queen of Jazz.”

Laine was born to a Jamaican father and an English mother. She quit school at age 14 and took a variety of jobs while auditioning forsinging jobs. Her first break came in 1951, when she was hired as a vocalist for theJohnny Dankworth Seven, a well-knownjazz group. At that point she adopted the simpler name “Cleo Laine.” In her seven years dedicated solely to performing with Dankworth’s band, she gained a large following and also began to record. In 1958, the year she married Dankworth (died 2010), she took her first theatrical role, inFlesh to a Tiger, set in Jamaica. Her success in the part led her to take on a number of otheracting roles throughout the years, and she was a regular on the weekly BBC television satireThat Was the Week That Was.

In the meantime, Laine continued to stretch herself as a singer, presentinglieder, classicblues,contemporarypop music, and even works byArnold Schoenberg in her concerts; she was the only singer to receiveGrammy Award nominations in jazz, popular, and classical categories. In 1986 she won a Grammy for best female jazz vocal performance (for the albumCleo at Carnegie: The 10th Anniversary Concert; 1985). Laine continued to record and perform into the early 21st century. In addition, she performed in plays byEuripides,William Shakespeare, andHenrik Ibsen and took part inmusical theatre, notably (1988–89) inStephen Sondheim’sInto the Woods. She appeared in several movies, including the comedyThe Last of the Blonde Bombshells (2000).

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In 1969 Laine and Dankworth founded Wavendon AllMusic Plan, a charity that sought to makemusic more accessible. She was made Officer of the Order of theBritish Empire (OBE) in 1977 and was elevated to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 1997 Queen’s Birthday Honours List. She wrote the autobiographiesCleo (1994) andYou Can Sing If You Want To (1997).