CALGARY - John Mayer is slowly, but surely, moving out of the shadow of his former self.

And out of those cast by the musicians -- Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Dave Matthews -- to whom he has been compared.

Last night, in front of 9,000 fans at the Saddledome, the five-time Grammy winner -- who first caught the attention of critics and many young women in 2002 with Your Body is a Wonderland, proved to be a credible singer-songwriter and musician, not just some pretty-boy pop star.

He mostly shied away from the soft ballads that made him a household name, concentrating instead on his R&B tunes from last year's Continuum during his 100-minute set.

Dressed down in blue jeans and a T-shirt, the 29-year-old New Yorker kicked things off with a short, bluesy guitar solo before breaking into a soulful rendition of his anti-war effort Belief.

Mayer then let his vocals and guitar talents shine through such crowd-pleasers as Waiting for the World to Change, Good Love is on the Way and a funky version of Bigger Than My Body, which he performed backed by a terrific sounding seven-piece band.

He allowed his extraordinary talent to been seen sporadically throughout the night, with his charisma, on and off the mic, carrying the show (You really must see Mayer's odd dancing style, in which his left foot almost turns entirely around, to truly get this man).

Leaving his much-written-about ego at the door, Mayer seemed confident and at home on stage, simply ignoring the high-pitched screams and camera flashes coming from the floor, which were especially noticeable during his first two numbers.

The presence on the stage that wasn't there is, of course, his highly publicized romance with reality TV star and pop singer Jessica Simpson.

Mayer should be noticed, not for dating Simpson, but for introducing his rich brand of R&B, funk and blues to a generation which is normally obsessed with manufactured pop stars who don't know the difference between chicken and tuna.

Speaking of Simpson, she and her assets were nowhere to be seen last night.

Luckily, Ottawa's folk/country singer Kathleen Edwards, stunning in her own right, opened the show.

She delivered a polished 45-minute set which included Six O'Clock News, Good Things and an fun rendition of Dolly Parton's Wildflowers.

She also allowed her personality to shine, sharing a story about a truck-load of girls who flashed a "I love John Mayer" sign at her tour bus between Edmonton and Calgary. "Next time, could you make it, I love Kathleen Edwards?" she wondered.

Based on last night's reaction from the crowd, that day is probably not far off.