She is the only person to have received Grammy nominations in the jazz, popular and classical music awards.
Laine was born in a London suburb to a Jamaican father and English mother who sent her to singing and dancing lessons at an early age. She did not take up singing seriously until her mid-twenties, however. She auditioned successfully for a band led by musician John Dankworth, with which she performed until 1958, when she and Dankworth married.
She then began her career as a singer and actress. She played the lead in a new play at London's famous Royal Court Theatre, home of the new wave of playwrights of the 1950s: Harold Pinter and the like. This led to other stage performances such as the musical Valmouth in 1959, the play A Time to Laugh (with Robert Morley and Ruth Gordon) in 1962, and eventually to her show stopping Julie in the Wendy Toye production of Showboat at the Adelphi Theatre in London in 1971.
During this period she had two major recording successes. You'll Answer to Me reached the British Top 10 while Laine was 'prima donna' in the 1961 Edinburgh Festival production of Kurt Weill's opera/ballet The Seven Deadly Sins. In 1964 her Shakespeare and All that Jazz album with Dankworth received widespread critical acclaim, and to this day remains an important milestone in her identification with the more unusual aspects of a singer's repertoire.
1972 marked the start of Laine's international activities, with a successful first tour of Australia. Shortly afterwards, her career in the United States was launched with a concert at New York's Lincoln Center, followed in 1973 by the first of many Carnegie Hall appearances. Coast-to-coast tours of the U.S. and Canada soon followed, and with them a succession of record albums and television appearances. This led, after several nominations, to Cleo's first Grammy award, in recognition of the live recording of her 1983 Carnegie concert.
Laine colaborated with many great classical musicians including James Galway, Nigel Kennedy, Julian Lloyd Webber and John Williams.
Other important recordings during that time were duet albums with Ray Charles (Porgy and Bess) and Mel Tormé (see Nothing Without You), as well as Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire which won Laine a classical Grammy nomination.
Laine's relationship with the musical theatre, started in Britain, continued in the United States with starring performances in Sondheim's A Little Night Music and The Merry Widow (Michigan Opera). In 1985 she originated the role of Princess Puffer in the Broadway hit musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood, for which she received a Tony nomination, and in 1989 she received the Los Angeles critics' acclaim for her portrayal of the Witch in Sondheim's Into the Woods.
In the 2006 New Years Honours list, her husband John Dankworth was made a knight bachelor, becoming Sir John Dankworth. As his wife, she is entitled to be known as "Lady Dankworth," however, she uses her own professional name.
Sophisticated Lady
Cleo Laine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And in this heart of yours burned a flame
A flame that flickered one day and died away
Then, with disillusion deep in your eyes
You learned that fools in love soon grow wise
The years have changed you, somehow
I see you now
Diamonds shining, dancing, dining with some man in a restaurant
Is that all you really want?
No, sophisticated lady
I know, you miss the love you lost long ago
And when nobody is nigh you cry
The song "Sophisticated Lady" by Cleo Laine is a poignant interpretation of Duke Ellington's classic jazz ballad. The lyrics describe the life of a woman who has been disillusioned by love and now lives a life of hedonistic indulgence, always chasing fleeting pleasures but never truly finding happiness. The first stanza describes the woman's past, a time when she was young and in love, but that love eventually burned out, leaving her disillusioned and wiser. The second stanza paints a picture of the woman's current life, one of excess and decadence, but also one filled with loneliness and regret.
The phrase "sophisticated lady" is used throughout the song to describe the woman, but the meaning is constantly shifting. At first, it seems to suggest a sense of sophistication and elegance, but as the song progresses, it takes on a more ironic tone, implying that the woman's sophistication is a veneer, hiding a deeper sense of sadness and emptiness.
This song, as interpreted by Cleo Laine, is a poignant reminder of the fleeting nature of love and the importance of living with intention and purpose. It highlights the dangers of getting caught up in the pursuit of superficial pleasures and the importance of staying connected to one's emotions and true desires.
Line by Line Meaning
They say into your early life romance came
According to others, love came into your life at an early age
And in this heart of yours burned a flame
You felt a passionate love within your heart
A flame that flickered one day and died away
The love you once had slowly disappeared
Then, with disillusion deep in your eyes
You became discouraged and lost faith in love
You learned that fools in love soon grow wise
You realized that those who fall in love foolishly soon become wiser
The years have changed you, somehow
Over time, you have transformed in some way
I see you now
I can observe you as you are now
Smoking, drinking, never thinking of tomorrow, nonchalant
You engage in activities like smoking and drinking, never pondering the future, and act nonchalantly
Diamonds shining, dancing, dining with some man in a restaurant
You go out with a man and indulge in luxurious activities like dancing and dining, with your diamonds shining
Is that all you really want?
Is that truly everything you desire?
No, sophisticated lady
No, you are not simply a woman of worldly knowledge
I know, you miss the love you lost long ago
I understand that you long for the love you once had but have since lost
And when nobody is nigh you cry
And when no one is around, you shed tears
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Edward Kennedy Ellington, Irving Mills, Mitchell Parish
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Geoff 1
Such a unique voice how can i describe, soft, mellow, sweet, deep, high, a mixture of blues and at times operatic.
And that's only for starters. In a word fantastic. xx
Jayne Anne Strutt
The one and only Cleo, with a voice as timeless as the songs she sings. Thank you Geoff xx
britturk123
Sweet and mellow from the wonderful Cleo Laine.