When Leo Kottke was a kid in Muskogee, Oklahoma, a poorly handled firecracker did permanent damage to his hearing in one ear. But you’d never know Kottke was partly deaf, or that he could mishandle anything, when he picks a guitar in that aggressive, complicated, syncopated style that has been his alone, utterly inimitable, for nearly 40 years. (Some, including the chronically self-deprecating Kottke, might argue that his deafness evinces itself in his strange baritone. Most fans, however, find Kottke’s rumbling voice a fine counterpoint to the richly harmonic melodies he pulls from his guitars.) He’s released 30 albums of his own material since his 1968 debut, 12-String Blues; his most recent was 2005’s Sixty-Six Steps, his second collaboration with former Phish bassist Mike Gordon, which is highlighted by three guitar instrumentals. He has collaborated with fellow guitar masters like Chet Atkins and Jorma Kaukonen, and with songwriters the likes of Lyle Lovett and Rickie Lee Jones. Kottke books shorter tours than he used to do, and so his performances are that rare thing: an opportunity to see an artist who has mastered his instrument. To boot, like most people who take to the stage with nothing but a guitar in hand, he’s an ace storyteller.

Thursday, May 3. Doors at 7pm, show at 8pm. Tralf Music Hall, 622 Main Street (852-2860). $25 at the door, $22.50 presale (852-5000, ticketmaster.com, New World Records).