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Mary Steenburgen, an Academy Award winning actress and the star of over 40 films, is embarking on a new career late in life as a singer and musician.

Steenburgen, 60, discovered her new musical talent after undergoing minor surgery on her arm.

"I went under general anesthetic, and the music started right after that," she told CBS News on Sunday.

The actress said she began hearing music and lyrics in her head.

"At one point I kind of looked in the mirror and said, you know, you're a mom, you're a wife, people count on you, you can't go off the deep end into this kind of crazy, musical swirl," she said.

But that's exactly what she did, and with the help of musicians in Nashville, she's written or co-written more than 40 songs. Universal Music has even signed her as a songwriter.

And she's taken up the accordion.

"I'm obsessed by it. I love it beyond belief. There's something about it that just appeals to me, I don't know why," Steenburgen told CBS News.

Her husband, actor Ted Danson, bought her an accordion on Valentine's Day, though her new musical obsession freaked him out initially.

"At first it was scary and threatening to our relationship. Is she humming to herself, or is she pissed off? I can't tell!" he joked to CBS.

Steenburgen showcases both her acting and her songwriting in her new film "Last Vegas," opposite Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas, Kevin Kline and Morgan Freeman.

In the film, she plays a Vegas lounge singer and sings one of her very own songs.

"Hey, it's a miracle to have a career in Hollywood. But it doesn't begin to sum me up," she said.