Pat McWilliams’ “Can’t Erase” Named October “Best Song Of The Month”

Pat McWilliams, a songwriter & artist based in Toronto, ON, Canada, has won the SongwriterUniverse “Best Song Of The Month” Contest for October, for his song “Can’t Erase.” McWilliams is a longtime musician who writes songs in the pop, rock and country genres, and he records and produces his recordings at his home studio.

“Can’t Erase” is an appealing, heartfelt country/pop song, and McWilliams’ lead vocals convey the emotion of the lyric story. The song starts off with acoustic guitar and vocals, and gradually builds to a full arrangement with strings added. Musically, the song reaches its peak in the choruses, where the melody lifts to a higher range. Impressively, McWilliams played all the instruments and sang the vocal tracks on this recording.

McWilliams grew up in the Toronto area, and early on he learned to play guitar, which is his main instrument. He was inspired by listening to such favorite artists as the Beatles and Tom Petty, and more recently to Jason Isbell and Joe Bonamassa.

After high school, McWilliams attended Fanshawe College in London, Ontario, where he took a 2-year course, Music Industry Arts, and he studied songwriitng, recording and production. Following college, he formed a band and played on the road for a year.

From that point on, McWilliams has focused more on his songwriting, although he has continued to perform as an artist and on other music projects. Over the years, he has made a living as a guitar teacher and by playing live gigs.

With his song “Can’t Erase,” McWilliams explains how he wrote it. “It came out quickly. I had my acoustic guitar and it just started coming out. It was inspired by a phone message I heard from my father, who has since passed away. It was the last message on voicemail that we had of him, and when I hear his voice it makes me feel like he’s still here. Also, I was moved by watching videos about MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving). It was about someone who had gone out, but didn’t come home due to a drunk driving accident. ‘Can’t Erase’ is a song about trying to heal.”

Currently, McWilliams established a new collaboration with Todd Slacum, a songwriter & musician from Georgetown, Delaware. They’ve formed a new rock duo called The Distant, and released their first single & video, “Save The Day.” McWilliams has also been writing & recording songs in different genres, for placement with artists, and for film & TV.