Cleo Laine, whose husky contralto was one of the most distinctive voices in jazz and who was regarded by many as Britain’s greatest contribution to the quintessentially American

Cleo Laine, who was married to and performed with fellow jazz musician John Dankworth, has died, according to the U.K. music venue they'd founded.

Then came the second number — Carole King's "Music," accompanied by Laine's saxophonist husband John Dankworth and his band, in an arrangement designed to establish her jazz credentials. In Britain, she and Dankworth had been playing clubs and concerts since the 1950s, but American audiences were just meeting her.