Mildred Bailey (1907–1951) was an American singer known for her light soprano voice, clear articulation, and distinctive jazz phrasing. Heavily influenced by Ethel Waters and Bessie Smith, she was one of the first non-Black performers to become an accomplished jazz and blues singer.

Mildred was born on the Coeur d'Alene Reservation, the daughter of a white father and a Native American mother. She first learned music from her mother, a pianist. Around 1913, the family moved to Spokane, Washington, and in 1916 her mother died. By the age of 17, Mildred was supporting herself, working as a pianist in movie theatres, working in a music store, and a singer in speakeasies. 

Her brief marriage to a man named Ted Bailey gave her the surname she retained throughout her career. Her recordings of Georgia on My Mind and the blues classic Rockin' Chair became especially popular. In 1933, she married Paul Whiteman's xylophonist, Red Norvo, that same year, Red Norvo formed his own band while Mildred launched her solo career. She recorded with many of the leading jazz musicians of the era, she performed on numerous national radio programmes, and appeared at many of the country's most popular ballrooms and nightclubs. In 1936, when Norvo's band began to struggle, he brought Mildred in as the featured vocalist. Until the band disbanded in 1939, the couple became known as 'Mr. and Mrs. Swing' ...  Among the songs most closely associated with ​​Mildred are Someday Sweetheart, More than you know, and The lamp Is low. After the breakup of the Norvo band, she resumed her solo career. She performed at leading New York nightclubs, hosted her own CBS radio series in 1944, and continued to make recordings of exceptional quality. Health problems limited her career after 1945, although she continued to perform occasionally until her death in 1951.

Mildred Bailey - The Lamp Is Low (1939)