His exposure to Appalachian music came at an early age because his grandfather played fiddle and banjo in Logan before he died in 1903 in a mining accident.

[1] Three of the issued sides and three of the unissued were recorded with Sherman Lawson, a Logan County fiddler; others featured Hutchison's guitar, harmonica and voice.

[1] Some years after his recording career had ended and after he left the Logan County coal mines, Hutchison and his wife operated a store in Lake, West Virginia, where he also served as postmaster.

Hutchison is considered to be one of the finest performers of the "white country blues" genre of early folk music.

Hutchison's songs have been covered by or have influenced Doc Watson, John Fahey, Bob Dylan, Mike Seeger, Roscoe Holcomb, Cowboy Copas, Frank Fairfield, Chris Smither, and Charlie Parr.