MUSIC: McLaughlin back at the Shack

LITTLE ROCK — Jon McLaughlin - not to be confused with the John McLaughlin who is the jazzy guitar wizard known for his work with the Mahavishnu Orchestra and Carlos Santana - is something more akin to a blend of John Mayer and Bruce Hornsby.

Take Mayer's songwriting and vocal talents - and his handsome good looks - and mix in piano playing, and you have a clue as to what this McLaughlin is all about.

Throw in his performance on this year's Academy Awards show of "So Close," a song he sang in the Oscar-nominated Disney movie Enchanted, and his romantic connections are even more solid.

The 25-year-old native of Anderson, Ind., has been playing piano since he was a 4-yearold, but like many young boys, he tired of it for a time and took up inline skating - until he fell and broke both wrists. After that, he apparently decided that playing piano was not as uncool and painful as he had previously thought. Impressed by the styles of Ben Folds, Billy Joel and Elton John, he returned to the instrument.

He went to college at his hometown Anderson University, where he studied piano and was chosen to release a 10-song album in 2004. That well-received, while amateur, recording led to his discovery and a showcase in New York, where he was signed by Island Records' label chief, L.A. Reid, himself a songwriter, record producer and the discoverer of several talented artists, including Pink, The Killers and FallOut Boy.

While he was working in Los Angeles, he found himself so homesick for the Hoosier State that he titled his debut CD Indiana. The album features "Beautiful Disaster," which was heard in the opening credits of the film Georgia Rule, starring Lindsay Lohan and Jane Fonda. Another McLaughlin song, "Another Layer," was used on the soundtrack of the 2007 children's movie Bridge to Terabithia.

McLaughlin has toured with Cowboy Mouth, Sister Hazel, O.A.R., Marc Broussard, Susan Tedeschi, Kelly Clarkson and Sara Bareilles.

His next CD, OK Now, is scheduled for release Oct. 7 on Island Records.

McLaughlin has performed at Sticky Fingerz twice before, in March 2007 and this past April.

Jon McLaughlin 9 p.m. Saturday, Sticky Fingerz Chicken Shack, 107 Commerce St., Little Rock Opening act: Adam Hambrick Tickets: $10 (501) 372-7707