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A00411 - Cleo Laine, Grammy Winning British Jazz Singer

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 88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888 Actors “Queen of Jazz”   Dame Cleo Laine singing at the Jazz at Lincoln Center concert “Here's to the Ladies: A Celebration of Great Women in Jazz,” New York City, November 17, 2003. Cleo Laine 88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888 Cleo Laine  (born October 28, 1927, Southall,  Middlesex , England—died July 24, 2025, Wavendon, Buckinghamshire, England) was a British singer and actress with a four- octave  range who mastered a variety of styles but was best known as the “Queen of Jazz.” Born Clementina Campbell, she was the daughter of a Jamaican father, Alec Campbell, and an English mother, Minnie Hitchings. She quit school at age 14 and took a variety of jobs while auditioning for  singing  jobs. Her first break came in 1951, when she was hired as a vocalist for the  Johnny Dankworth Seven, a well-known  jazz ...