Can't import pandas. Matplotlib and distutils conflict.
Trying to import pandas

``` python

In [1]: import pandas
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
AttributeError                            Traceback (most recent call last)
<ipython-input-1-d6ac987968b6> in <module>()
----> 1 import pandas

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/__init__.pyc in <module>()
     42 import pandas.core.config_init
     43
---> 44 from pandas.core.api import *
     45 from pandas.sparse.api import *
     46 from pandas.stats.api import *

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/core/api.py in <module>()
      7 from pandas.core.common import isnull, notnull
      8 from pandas.core.categorical import Categorical
----> 9 from pandas.core.groupby import Grouper
     10 from pandas.core.format import set_eng_float_format
     11 from pandas.core.index import Index, CategoricalIndex, Int64Index, Float64Index, MultiIndex

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/core/groupby.py in <module>()
     14 from pandas.core.base import PandasObject
     15 from pandas.core.categorical import Categorical
---> 16 from pandas.core.frame import DataFrame
     17 from pandas.core.generic import NDFrame
     18 from pandas.core.index import Index, MultiIndex, CategoricalIndex, _ensure_index

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/core/frame.py in <module>()
     39                                    create_block_manager_from_arrays,
     40                                    create_block_manager_from_blocks)
---> 41 from pandas.core.series import Series
     42 from pandas.core.categorical import Categorical
     43 import pandas.computation.expressions as expressions

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/core/series.py in <module>()
   2862 # Add plotting methods to Series
   2863
-> 2864 import pandas.tools.plotting as _gfx
   2865
   2866 Series.plot = base.AccessorProperty(_gfx.SeriesPlotMethods, _gfx.SeriesPlotMethods)

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/tools/plotting.py in <module>()
    133         return False
    134
--> 135 if _mpl_ge_1_5_0():
    136     # Compat with mp 1.5, which uses cycler.
    137     import cycler

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/pandas/tools/plotting.py in _mpl_ge_1_5_0()
    128     try:
    129         import matplotlib
--> 130         return (matplotlib.__version__  >= LooseVersion('1.5')
    131                 or matplotlib.__version__[0] == '0')
    132     except ImportError:

/usr/local/lib/python2.7/distutils/version.pyc in __cmp__(self, other)
    294             other = LooseVersion(other)
    295
--> 296         return cmp(self.version, other.version)
    297
    298

AttributeError: 'unicode' object has no attribute 'version'
```

matplotlib.**version** returns unicode object, but distutils.version has this code

``` python

    def __cmp__ (self, other):
        if isinstance(other, StringType):
            other = LooseVersion(other)

        return cmp(self.version, other.version)
```

and isinstance(u'123', StringType) is False

Pandas version - 0.17.0, matplotlib version - 1.4.0
