Phil Dutra strikes me as an eminently nice guy. His songs have a pleasant 1970s soft rock aura, roughed up just a bit around the edges with some 1980s new wave and 1990s indie sensibilities. His recorded output has emerged in fits and starts in 1999, 2007, and more recently in 2014.  I like a lot of what he does. But I was floored on first listen to what I think should be a monster hit, his anthemic “She Walks Away,” particularly the Michael Lloyd remix featured on his 2007 EP Right Behind the Rain with its more tweaked vocal effects. This is a big song, with changes that ring out with that ‘I’m a classic song’ feel. I can’t believe the song has not been picked up by some hit-belting vocal giant like Michael Buble or Rod Stewart. Of course, I’d prefer covers more in the Fountains of Wayne register but you get my drift. The song deserves to be sung and should be Dutra’s regular paycheque. Well, for now we have Dutra’s version and make no mistake it’s pretty special.

Catch up with Phil’s recordings on Bandcamp or his latest music news on his Facebook page. And recommend this song to some insanely popular vocalist you know.