CAMBRIDGE — Local singer Amy Black played Club Passim on April 3 to release her new album, One Time.

One Time features collaborations with singer and songwriter Mark Erelli, guitarist Tim Gearan, fiddler Stuart Duncan, and dobro guitarist Roger Williams. The music is a combination of sounds such as blues, folk, rock, country and blue grass, which she describes as, “Roots with a little bit of country.”

She draws inspiration from artists such as Bonnie Raitt, Patty Griffin, Buddy Miller, Loretta Lynn, and Dolly Parton. She recalled when she first heard Raitt sing “A Thing Called Love”.

She thought, “Forget Paula Abdul. I was listening to this and I was thinking ‘Oh my gosh where has this woman been?’”

“There was a moment when I connected with the music that I discovered that I loved and that’s always been at my core,” she said.

For about five years, Black has been habitually writing her music on Sundays. She’s come a long way in her musical career since singing at weddings. By working with her public relations agency and radio press, Black hopes to branch out her music and develop a national following along the Eastern Seaboard.

At times Black feels like she has issues with moving forward with her music; however, she says when she hears other people listening to her songs, knowing the lyrics, and singing along, she feels the rewards of the work put into her music.

Black thinks of herself as the Mick Jagger of Americana. She describes her writing process as a more spontaneous approach.

“They just kind of come to me. I don’t sit down and think I’m going to write a song about this,” she said. “Something just comes to mind like whiskey and wine.”

“Whiskey and Wine” is one of her popular tracks on One Time. One of Black’s personal favorites is “One Time”. Fans also tend to enjoy “Meet Me on the Dance Floor”.

Black also talked about benefit concert that she played at a school for her drummer’s son.

“I felt like I was The Beatles,” Black said. “All the kids came up to the front and were going crazy and were screaming ‘Touch my hand! Touch my hand!’.”

This experience remains one of Black’s favorite performances of her career.

Black will be touring locally from April through September. She’ll be making appearances in Cambridge, Framingham, Shirley, Norwood, and Middleborough.

Follow Amy Black on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, or visit her official website.

Hey everyone! Happy Diwali! Even if you aren’t Hindu, take a second to light a candle, a diya (a small earthenware candle), or if you’re really ambitious, a firecracker.

Diwali’s roots vary throughout India. As one traverses India’s gorgeous landscape, one can uncover a plethora of different mythological tales to explain Diwali’s origins.

Many see it as a day to celebrate Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, by adorning her alter at the temple with money or pictures of material goods. Some gamble on Diwali too, because, as the legend goes, the goddess Parvati played dice with her husband on Diwali and declared anyone who gambled on the same day would fair extremely well.

The most popular tale

The most widely told Diwali tale goes like this:

Prince Rama was chosen by his father to become the new king of Ayodhya. The Queen Kaikeyi however, though initially ecstatic, is poisoned by her servant and begins to fear for the future of Rama’s brother, Bharata. The servant leads her to beleive Rama will do terrible things to Bharata to keep power in the kingdom. Because Kaikeyi saved her husband’s life earlier, the king promises to comply with her wish that he banish Rama from Ayodhya.

Rama obeys and, along with his wife Sita, descends into the dark, gloomy and ominous forest. While there his‚ wife is kidnapped by the demon Ravan, the ten-armed, ten-headed king from Sri Lanka. Rama, devastated and depressed, sets out on a mission to find his lost wife. When he eventually does, after conquering several emotional and physical obstacles over the course of years, he kills Ravan and retrieves his wife. Rama and Sita then journey back towards Ayodhya.

As the two near their kingdom, it is pitch black out. No moon and, of course, no street lights. Villagers hear of their approach and, to help them find their way, light candles outside their homes so they could safely find their way home.

When the two finally find their way back, with the help of kind villagers, Rama is crowned as king.

And thus began the celebration of Diwali; the festival of lights.

I’m off to celebrate. Happy Diwali!