Linn recording artist Claire Martin has to worldwide critical acclaim, established herself as a tour de force on the UK jazz scene gaining many awards, including winning the British Jazz Awards eight times during her career which spans over three decades. In 2018 she was the proud recipient of the BASCA Gold Badge Award for her contribution to jazz.

Claire became a professional singer at 19 and two years later realised her dream of singing at Ronnie Scott’s legendary jazz club in London Soho. Signed to the prestigious Glasgow based Linn Records in 1990, Claire has since released 18 CDs with the label, collaborating with musical luminaries including Martin Taylor, John Martyn, Stephane Grappelli, Kenny Barron, Richard Rodney Bennett and Jim Mullen on many of these recordings.

Claire has performed worldwide with her trio and, until his death in 2012, worked extensively with the celebrated composer and pianist Sir Richard Rodney Bennett in a cabaret duo setting both in England and the US where they played to sell-out houses at venues including the prestigious Algonquin Hotel in New York City. Claire will release her new album ‘I Watch You Sleep’ which is a collaboration with the American conductor and pianist Scott Dunn and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in March 2023. On this they pay homage to their dear friend Sir Richard by recording his songs alongside songs that Richard loved to perform. Claire will also be performing with her trio of Rob Barron on piano, Jeremy Brown on bass and Mark Taylor on drums recreating the songs from the album and touring the UK throughout the year.

Claire appears as a featured soloist with the Halle Orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the RTE Concert Orchestra, the Royal Northern Sinfonia, the BBC Big Band and the BBC Concert Orchestra. Claire co-presented BBC Radio 3’s flagship jazz program ‘Jazz Line Up’ from 2000 to 2017 and interviewed many of her musical heroes such as Pat Metheny and the late Michael Brecker.

At the Queen’s Birthday Honours in June 2011 Claire was delighted to be awarded an OBE for her Services to Jazz. Claire was thrilled to win both the 2009 and 2010 ‘Best Vocalist’ category at the British Jazz Awards and toured extensively throughout the UK, Scandinavia, Russia and China, appearing with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and her world-class trio.

Claire’s live projects for 2025 include;-

The continuation of her 2024 tour of Europe with her accomplished Swedish trio, led by the exceptional pianist and arranger Martin Sjöstedt, for their latest collaborative endeavor - 'Almost in Your Arms' (Stunt Records). Uppsala-born pianist/arranger Martin Sjöstedt leads the trio comprising bassist Niklas Fernqvist and drummer Daniel Fredriksson. Sjöstedt, one of Sweden’s most gifted and talked about jazz musicians, has created imaginative new arrangements of contemporary material exclusively for this exciting project.

iG4 is a new intergenerational band of four of the UK's finest jazz talent sharing their love of great songs and composers. Vocalist Claire Martin OBE joins multi-award-winning pianist and composer Nikki Iles, much-in-demand saxophonist Karen Sharp, and rising star bassist Ewan Hastie, who won the BBC's Young Jazz Musician of the Year in 2022. Brand new arrangements written for this project by Nikki will shine a light on classic repertoire from Tom Waits to Burch Bacharach, Anthony Newly, and Joni Mitchell, as well as stylish reworkings from the great writers of the American songbook, including Cole Porter and Johnny Mandel.

Claire also continues to team up with the legendary Scottish guitarist Jim Mullen for an intimate night of great American songbook classics and other lesser-known gems. Joined by in-demand bassist Adam King offering a swinging and soulful night of classic songs celebrating songwriters from Cole Porter to Donald Fagan.
Claire's Duo with Ian Shaw - 'A Century Of Song' brings these two award-winning jazz singers together after their initial meeting over 25 years ago. Alongside their highly successful solo careers, they have forged a musical partnership that has performed from New York to Vietnam and celebrates a hundred years of popular song - from the songs of hope written during The First World War to the American Songbook and Beatles, Bowie and Joni Mitchell. With just Ian's piano as accompaniment, this will be a musical evening to be remembered for a long time.