Legendary singer-songwriter and guitarist Shawn Phillips performs at The Mauch Chunk Opera House at 14 W. Broadway in Jim Thorpe at 8 p.m. Friday.

Phillips is one of most fascinating and enigmatic musicians to come out of the early '70s singer-songwriter boom, but his music is difficult to categorize. His refusal to shape his music which crosses between folk-rock, jazz, progressive, pop, and classical to anyone else's expectations has allowed him to hold onto a large and dedicated following.The Texas-born singer-songwriter was described as "The best-kept secret in the music business" by the late rock impresario Bill Graham. And where many of Phillips' singer/songwriter peers are certainly accomplished musicians, he can play six- and 12-string guitars and the sitar with skill, and his voice can travel across three full octaves.In the 1960s Phillips worked as a session player on several Donovan albums including "Fairytale," "Sunshine Superman" and "Mellow Yellow," performed at the Isle of Wight festival, sang on "Lovely Rita" by the Beatles. Four of his albums Faces, Bright White, Furthermore, and Do You Wonder made it into the Billboard Top 100.Tickets are $20 and are available when doors open at 7 p.m. or can be purchased at mauchchunkoperahouse.com or by calling the Opera House box office at 570-325-0249. Tickets are also available at Sound Check Records, 570-325-4009, at 23 Broadway in downtown Jim Thorpe. Parking is available downtown at the Carbon County Municipal Lot behind the train station and is free after 5 p.m.