For many of us, the sight of Steve Martin calls to mind props from his years in stand-up comedy (bunny ears, or an arrow-through-the-head); catchphrases like “Well, excuuuuse me!” and “We are two wild and crazy guys!”; or memorably funny movie quotes (like “I was born a poor black child,” from his first film, “The Jerk”).

But after venturing into memoir- (“Born Standing Up”), play- (“Picasso at the Lapin Agile”) and novel-writing (“An Object of Beauty,” “Shopgirl,” etc.) in recent years, Martin has now shifted a good bit of his attention, and comedic sensibilities, to writing and performing bluegrass songs on his banjo, which he first picked up at age 17. Currently on tour with the acclaimed Steep Canyon Mountain Rangers—who accompany him on his newest and second album of original songs, “Rare Bird Alert”—Martin will appear for one sold-out show at the Power Center as part of the Ann Arbor Summer Festival.

Martin taught himself how to play the banjo in 1962, while living with his family in Orange County, California. Inspired by the folk music craze —epitomized at the time by The Kingston Trio—Martin enlisted the help of a high school friend: John McEuen, who later became a member of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.

“I just got very lucky—and I really practiced hard, especially early on,” Martin said during a press conference call about the current tour. “It was a struggle, … because I was doing other things, too, and I didn’t have people to play with. … That led to me writing a lot of songs. Because I didn’t have people to play with, I didn’t learn so much the canon of bluegrass. I really learned my own songs.”

But why, of all instruments, did the banjo become the object of Martin’s musical focus? “I just loved the sound of it,” he said. “ … And I can’t explain that. That’s just primordial. … When I heard it, I literally could part with my ears the other instruments and just listen to the banjo. … I just loved … both its melancholy aspect and its dynamic speed.”

Martin is only too aware that the public is often resistant to actors who try, on the side, to develop music careers, too. But he thinks there’s a good reason for that.

“It’s not that (the actors) are trying to become musicians,” said Martin. “They’re trying to become rock stars. And that’s always kind of ludicrous. It’s like they’re not … paying the dues. But there’s something about the banjo. … It looks and sounds very difficult. And it is. … And so suddenly, (audiences are) not laughing when suddenly you play something—a 3-finger banjo thing at lightning speed.”

Many fans will remember that Martin integrated banjo-playing into his stand-up comedy act very early in his career; but even so, performing with a music group on a stage came was something Martin had to adjust to.

For after Martin performed with a group of musicians on David Letterman's TV show to promote his first, Grammy-winning bluegrass album, “The Crow,” “I got a call from my friend Pete Wernick, and he said, ‘By the way, … when the other person is playing, it’s customary to look at them.’ And I said, ‘Oh, really?’ So I was kind of learning these little things as I went along.”

And it took me a while to get relaxed—just to look away from the (banjo) neck every once in a while. And just common things that people who have been playing music on stage for years and years and years just do automatically.”

Martin’s newest album, “Rare Bird Alert”—the title was inspired by his work on the Jack Black/Owen Wilson birdwatching comedy, “The Big Year”—features catchy songs that reflect Martin’s trademark, absurdist worldview, as well as instrumentals and ballads like “You,” which features the otherwise-musically-dormant Dixie Chicks.

“I jumped at the chance (to work with them) because I know they have great harmonies,” said Martin. “And the song is made for harmonies. … They did a beautiful job, and they were really delightful to work with. … One of the rumors, on their breakup—well, they all seemed to be very, very close friends in the studio.”

Paul McCartney, meanwhile, lent his vocals to the song “Best Love."

Martin noted that his songwriting methods vary widely. Sometimes a song’s seed is an idea (like "Atheists Don't Have No Songs”) or a phrase (like “Go Away, Stop, Turn Around, Come Back”), while at other times, a song begins as a melody (“You”). But Martin’s comic worldview shines through tunes like the furiously up-tempo “Women Like to Slow Dance”; the cynical break-up song, “Jubilation Day”; and the bluegrass update of Martin’s 1978 novelty hit, “King Tut.”

While including “Tut” on “Rare Bird Alert” was Martin’s idea, he confessed that he didn’t take the decision lightly.

“The reason I finally put it on the record was, I want people to know that our live show is fun,” said Martin. “That when they come to the live show, it’s not going to be me standing on stage with my back to the audience playing 30 songs in a row, with no comedy.”

But how has Martin, who pursues such a wide range of projects, managed to dedicate so much time to his music? “I said this on David Letterman(‘s show),” said Martin. “He says, ‘How do you have time to do all this?’ I said, ‘Well I don’t have a job, you know. I don’t go to work. I wake up, and there (are) hours in the day.”

Here's a video clip of Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers performing "Atheists Don't Have No Songs":

Jenn McKee is the entertainment digital journalist for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at jennmckee@annarbor.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.