Note-worthy in Plymouth: Amber Crowley

Amber Crowley has been working as an emergency room doctor at South Shore Hospital for about six years. But when she is not assisting patients, she strives to establish herself in her second career as a singer/songwriter in Plymouth and its surrounding areas.

Last weekend, the singer and acoustic guitar player entertained an audience at the in honor of the release of her new CD, titled “Hope Floats.”

said that the Sands was the ideal place to debut her new album, as she performs there frequently with drummer Al Peterson and bass player Tim Brosnan. However, as the Plymouth motel allows her to play next to the ocean, it can also be an inspiring place to perform.

“I wanted to be at the ocean and be in this kind of a setting,” Crowley said. “It’s a very special place here and a lot of it is the connection to the Earth and the ocean.”

In order to showcase her new CD, Crowley and her band played many of the 12 songs written by the musician on “Hope Floats.” Performing her original songs can sometimes be difficult for Crowley, however, as she said that the album is extremely personal.

One song on the CD, titled “I’m Getting Strong,” discusses Crowley’s experience with sexual assault when she was working as a waitress when she was 16 years old. Although she said she knows that people do not come to concerts to hear about such serious matters, Crowley believes that it is an important song for her to sing.

“I’m hoping that song helps people who are victims of sexual assault kind of overcome that or other challenges,” she said.

During last weekend’s show, Crowley also performed many cover songs, including those from John Denver, the Eagles and Tina Turner. As she said her band knows about 100 covers, Crowley believes that it is important to play a wide variety of songs at all of her shows.

“We go from Patsy Cline to Taylor Swift,” she said. “I want to have something for grandma, but I want to have something for the grandchild that’s there too.”

With this wide range of music, many Pilgrim Sands’ guests who stayed for Crowley’s show, such as Doreen Bechan and her husband, said they enjoyed her performance.

“We are really having a good time down here,” Bechan said. “We thought she was fun.”

Currently, Crowley said she performs solo or with her band about three times per week. She enjoys playing many benefit concerts around the South Shore, but also makes time to perform at local spots, such as the .

Although it can be difficult to balance being a musician and being a physician, Crowley said that she will never give up her passion for music as it makes her a better doctor. For Crowley, music is an enormous stress relief. It also helps her work through some of the more difficult things she must face as a doctor, such as seeing her patients pass away.

“Yes, it is hard to balance it all, but in the same way, it is so important that I try to make time for it,” she said.