Dayna Manning

Canadian native Dayna Manning draws from a wide range of musical inspirations that include Joni Mitchell, Tool, and Rage Against the Machine. Though her songs generally fall within the pop/rock category, traces of alternative, folk, and roots rock frequently surface in her work. At the age of eighteen she laid down her first record in 1997.

Born in 1978 and raised in Stratford, Ontario, Manning grew up surrounded by music in a household where both parents performed on instruments and her father also worked as a music instructor. This environment led her to begin performing at open-mic nights and securing early live engagements, which ultimately brought her to the attention of industry figures in Toronto.

Her evident talent quickly secured a contract with EMI Records, resulting in the 1997 release of her debut album, Vol. One. The sessions featured contributions from keyboardist Ray Coburn, drummer Creighton Doane, and guitarists Sean Ono Lennon, Mike Borkoski, and Kurt Schefter. Her father, David, added trumpet, while her mother, Darlene, played clarinet.

Among the tracks listeners encounter on the album are “Gold,” “Simple Plan,” “Half the Man,” “The End of the Game,” “And That Was Done,” “A Walk on the Moon,” and “My Kind.”