DURHAM – Ithaca, N.Y.-based folk musician Joe Crookston will bring his many talents to Durham on Friday night for a concert in honor of Bee Douglas, a longtime resident and Religious Society of Friends member who died in July at the age of 103.

Crookston, 42, has played in 46 states, been awarded Album of the Year by the Folk Music Alliance for his 2008 release, “Able Baker & Charlie Dog,” and had his songs played on National Public Radio’s “All Songs Considered.” In addition to his show in Durham, Crookston is serving as the artist in residence at Leavitt High School in Turner this week. He describes himself as an “artist, writer, singer, guitar picker, painter, claw hammer banjo player, eco-village member and believer in all things possible.”

Crookston recently took time to answer a few questions from the Tri-Town Weekly about his roots, his love of community, and how he tries to make history come alive through song.

Q: You’ve played in 46 states, but this is your first trip to Maine. What took you so long?

A: I know! I have many friends in Maine so it’s been on my radar for a while. I’ve spent time in Washington state and Oregon, so in some ways Maine already feels like home and I can check it off my list. After this, only Alaska, Hawaii and Arkansas are left.

Q: Where did you grow up and where are you based now?

A: I live in Ithaca, N.Y. It’s an amazingly creative, musical, community-first town with musicians everywhere. I grew up in northeast Ohio, lived in Seattle for nine years, and now I really connect with Ithaca’s rural feel and culture. My wife and kids and I live in an intentional community in Ithaca, which is fantastic. It’s a sustainable community concept and not passive, very well integrated and strong.

Q: Where and when did you decide to become a folk singer?

A: It was after I attended the Kent State Folk Festival. It changed my life. I was a student at Kent State, and a friend of mine said, “Hey do you want to go to the Kent State Folk Festival?’ I said, “What’s a folk festival?” After a weekend of amazing concerts, I was blown away. I sold my electric guitar, bought a steel string, started writing, and never looked back. Seeing performers like John McCutcheon, The Horseflies, and Nanci Griffith, I knew right then what I wanted to do with my life. I’ve been at it ever since.

Q: What drew you to a career in music?

A: All the money! Just kidding. Music and performing for me is about connecting. It happens to be the medium through which I connect the best. I really have no choice. It’s who I am. I am drawn to how music quickly goes beyond the mundane and reaches a deeper place inside myself and others. I enjoy experiencing life from that place. Woody Guthrie believed a song needs to be useful in a community and I firmly agree.

Q: Where do you get your inspiration from?

A: I’m inspired by great stories, Taoist parables, drunken roosters, rutabagas, life, death, slaves, troubled teens, Robert Frost, falcons, everything. I’m inspired to connect with people and their story. I have a lot of friends that are songwriters and honestly sometimes it’s 4 a.m. and we are sitting around swapping songs and they are the artists who really inspire me and reflect back to me what I’m doing. My friends and fellow songwriters make me a better musician. I’m inspired by creating magical moments that inspire depth of possibility. I was awarded a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation to travel around the Finger Lakes region of New York, interview people, collect stories and write original songs based on my travels. This was incredibly rich and inspiring to me. Hearing people’s stories challenges me to be a better observer and writer.

Q: There seems to be a full-blown folk and roots music revival happening in popular music with artists such as Mumford and Sons selling millions of albums and playing sold-out shows. Why in this age of digital music are people turning to this style?

A: I think bubblegum pop has become such an automated, mechanized form that people want something real. There’s so much monoculture in the country. Everybody watches the same television shows, listens to the same songs, and goes to the same chain restaurants. It’s a backlash against the spoon-fed nature of our society. Folk and Americana fills in the gaps that country music once did and people want those type narratives because they can relate to them. It’s real music.

Q: As an artist in residence at a high school, what types of things do you do?

A: I try and integrate creative arts with history, which can be anything from the Holocaust to the Underground Railroad. I do three workshops a day and weave together different disciplines such as music, visual art and storytelling. For the show in Durham, I may have kids join me if we’ve been working on something during the week. I love the magic of performing, but if I didn’t branch out as a teacher, I’d miss the longer-term connection to people in a certain community. It’s a three- or four-day immersion into the lives of these students, which is really cool.

Q: I’m sure you have a connection with all of your songs, but is there a particular song that really resonates with you?

A: I have an older song called “Fall Down as the Rain.” I think I’ve played it at every concert I’ve done since 2004. I never get tired of it. It’s a circular song that addresses the cycles of life, death and rebirth. It’s been covered a number of times by other artists, I’m very proud of this song. Also, “The Nazarene,” from my latest CD. It’s more personal and one that I am very proud of.

Q: Are there any career moments that stand out to you?

A: I’d say being awarded the “Album of the Year” Award in Memphis, Tenn., and playing the main stage at the Kerrville Music Festival in Texas. Also playing the main stage at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival in New York was a huge honor. I’m still amazed that it all keeps growing and I can make a living doing it.

Q: What can people expect from your show in Durham?

A: At almost every show I play someone comes up to me, usually a person who was dragged to the concert by a friend or spouse. They say, “I hate folk music. Singer-songwriters bore me to death, but I was blown away by your show. I loved it. I’m so glad I came. I’ll be back for sure.” I love that.

My shows are high energy, very rhythmic, musical, fun, and yet I’m really into a good story. For me, a successful concert is where people hoot and holler, listen intently, and ride the wave of hilarity and sacred all within the time we spend together. Some of it is very haunting and serious and some will crack you up. I like to connect, and I have many facets to my personality. I’m interested in exploring those through great songs and my connection with the audience. I will give you your money back if you are bored.

Joe Crookston