All credit to Jonathan Richman, the charmingly eccentric singer-songwriter whose early Velvet Underground/New York Dolls-inspired band the Modern Lovers segued from punkery to weirdo acoustic balladry.

On his own for years now, Richman has continued his wide-eyed, "the world is a wonder" musical observations with simple, cheerfully odd ditties that either seduce the listener or make the listener scratch his or her head. As per last year's "Sa" album, make no mistake: for all the childlike glee in Richman's work, the man is a poet with a big heart and a catalog full of thoughtful and clever work.

He's also charismatic as hell onstage, which you can witness tonight when he performs at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center. He'll be accompanied by former Giant Sand drummer Tommy Larkins.

Jonathan Richman, 7:30 tonight, Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook; $25-$30; www.thekate.org., (860) 510-0453.