IN CONCERT

Kelly Clarkson with Eric Hutchinson and Parachute

When: Today, 7:30 p.m. (doors at 6:30)

Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre

Tickets: $59.50/$39.50 in person at the Save-on-Foods Memorial box office (1925 Blanshard St.), by phone at 220-7777, or online at www.selectyourtickets.com

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Eric Hutchinson first took note of his own ability when people started comparing him to Cat Stevens, Billy Joel and Paul Simon. Then he took the comparisons to heart.

Hutchinson, 29, certainly sounds like the embodiment of 1970s pop. He does it the way it was back in the day -- on both piano and guitar, with hooks and thoughtful lyrics sung passionately and with conviction. That he is also signed to Warner Bros. Records, the artist-friendly family of associated labels that ruled the '70s, with releases by James Taylor and Joni Mitchell and everyone in between, makes even more sense.

He's been called a throwback, musically and philosophically, but Hutchinson doesn't see that as a bad problem to have in today's market.

"I'm influenced by a lot of the older acts for sure, the Beatles, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel -- artists who have an entire body of work, not just a random song," Hutchinson said from a tour stop in Vincennes, Ind. "I'm really interested in writing an entire album, which is the way it used to be."

Hutchinson is currently on the road with American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson for a 26-date tour that stops tonight in Victoria. Stylistically, the two appear to have little in common with each other, but Hutchinson says the union is only strange on paper.

Both love pop music and tackle cover songs of the way-out variety (Clarkson tackles the White Stripes' Seven Nation Army, while Hutchinson gets freaky on tracks by everyone from R. Kelly to George Michael) during their concerts. The tour is a high-profile one for Hutchinson, who says he has been amazed by the reception from Clarkson's fans.

Even if it wasn't a copacetic collaboration the songsmith says he would be up for a challenge. The prospect of winning new fans each night is something he truly enjoys.

"We've tried really hard to continue to push that envelope and make new fans.

"I make my music for everybody so we've tried to go out and open for all kinds of acts. I don't want to pigeonhole myself."

The cover art for his latest album, Sounds Like This, which arrived last May, features Hutchinson's likeness enveloped in a map featuring four cities that played key roles in his life: Washington, D.C., where he was born; Boston, where he was raised; Los Angeles, where he once lived; and New York, where he currently resides.

He loves them all, for a variety of reasons, even though he doesn't spend great lengths of time in any of them. Hutchinson is almost always busy out on the road.

"I feel pretty lucky at this point. I've really got a good sense of a bunch of different cities in America. I'm trying to create music for all different kinds of people, and you can't do that by staying in your hometown all the time. I like getting a sense of what people are like in other places."

He doesn't now a whole lot about Canada, as he has played here only a handful of times.

But the two dates on his itinerary with Clarkson (they also play Calgary on Friday) are intriguing to him nonetheless.

"In some ways, the album is still new to a lot of people. I can't to play it for them."

mdevlin@tc.canwest.com