Me&Thee Coffeehouse, Marblehead, Mass. | Friday night concerts from September to June

The me&thee celebrates its 42nd birthday with a co-bill featuring two local performers. Amy Black is a Boston singer-songwriter with storytelling and Southern tradition in her blood. In record time she has become one of the most sought-after acts in New England. The Boston Herald wrote that her “stunning debut” of original music on “One Time” brims with “beautifully imagined sound and soul.” Danielle Miraglia is a brilliant rootsy perfomer whose style could be called swampy Delta with a contemporary twist to it.

Genuine storytelling is a time-honored cus­tom, passed down through generations, shared with passion and imbued by honesty. Amy Black has an irrepressible passion for performing and a whole lot of authentic soul. With her latest album, One Time, Black takes her shot, makes a stand and delivers one of the most evocative new Americana discs of the year. “I believe that we get one chance in life.” Amy says. “Every day, with everything we do and every decision we make, we’ve got to make it count. Part of making it count is facing up to the truth. That’s what the characters in my songs are trying to do — tell the truth.” One Time is ruled by the truth, a disc that shares tales of hard times, strong women, and even stronger faith in the things that matter.

Black’s background is as refreshingly honest as her music. “My parents are from Northern Alabama,” Amy explains. “But my dad is a preacher so we moved around a lot when I was a kid. I grew up in Missouri, moved back to Alabama when I was 14, and then to Boston when I was 16. I think part of my outgoing nature comes from being in a different school almost every year from 13 on. With all the changes, two things I could always count on were singing with my family and visiting my grandparents in Alabama.” Amy sang publicly throughout her teens and fronted bands in college, but she did little with her music for nearly a decade while she built a career as a successful marketing professional. Her love for singing, however, would not be quelled. “About four years ago,” she says, “I told myself ‘it’s now or never.’” Her success at local open mic nights quickly led to a growing following. Before long, Amy had put together a band of some of the area’s most accomplished and eclectic musicians and become one of the region’s most popular Americana acts. In 2009, her debut album, Amy Black & The Red Clay Rascals paid tribute to her favorite songwriters while featuring two impressive originals.

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Danielle Miraglia comes armed with a strong, steady thumb on an old Gibson, an infectious stomp-box rhythm and harmonica. Her tunes range from heart-felt to socially conscious and will move both your heart and hips. Danielle’s latest release, Box of Troubles, a bare-bones expression of all these attributes, explores the highs and lows that life has to offer and has already received rave reviews. Raised just outside of Boston in Revere, Mass., where its famous beach is better known for girls with big hair than its history as a popular tourist attraction, Danielle grew up on a variety of popular music, from her parents’ Motown records to classic rock influences like The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin that encouraged her to learn to play guitar at thirteen.

A passion for the arts and an outstanding gift for writing led her to Emerson College. After graduating with a degree in Creative Writing, she put her writing skills, originally intended for novels, towards songwriting and began performing at open mike nights in the Boston area. This set in motion what would become a full-time career in music. She began headlining some of the most renowned blues and folk music venues in Boston, toured major cities from north to south and beyond, while earning street cred vigorously busking the streets of Harvard Square. Her Nothing Romantic CD was a breakthrough for Miraglia as a serious songwriting force, who could put into words what so many feel — a true explorer of the complexities of the human condition.

Photo by Todd Lehman