The Local is a band from New York City. The singer is from Cleveland, the piano player is from Kentucky, the drummer is from St. Louis, the guitarist is from Massachusetts and the organist is from Harlem. You get the idea.Tim Champeaux and Jon Cowherd met at Miss Mae's Place in New Orleans during the latter part of the last century. They bonded instantly, both having a healthy respect for Stevie Wonder, Tom Waits and Tequila. While in New Orleans, Cowherd hooked up with drummer Brian Blade and they formed The Brian Blade Fellowship. He also worked with Daniel Lanois and Joni Mitchell, just to name a few. Champeaux, on the other hand, moved to Brooklyn and was slugging it out with the Toasters, the Brand New Heavies, and local favorites The Second Step. When Cowherd finally landed in NYC for good, the duo began writing songs together; Champeaux writing the lyrics, Cowherd writing the music. It soon became evident that it was time to record. First up was scoring a short film called Annabelle which made the rounds on the festival circuit. The soundtrack caught the ears of producers at Good Machine Films, who commissioned the duo to compose and perform songs for the opening and closing credits for a new movie in pre-production named Goodbye Shoretown. "Cross-Country" and "Shoretown Serenade" are the results of those sessions, and although the film never did get finished, Champeaux and Cowherd were establishing themselves as a vibrant and formidable song-writing team. After hearing the single "Cross-Country" for the first time, one exuberant movie exec. dubbed their sound "Urban Americana". Nice...Champeaux and Cowherd decided that the best way to document this emerging sound was to enlist the help of their favorite New York musicians and form a band: The Local. Lee Alexander on bass (Norah Jones), Dave Berger on drums (Erin McKweon), Caleb Sherman on organ (KBC All-Stars) and Pete Smith (The Flying Neutrinos) formed the core unit. Add a few guest stars like Goffrey Moore (Jonatha Brooke), John Gros (Papa Grows Funk) and Ann Cowherd, and you have the debut CD, "Just Show Up"A sold-out CD release party at lower east side landmark club The Living Room, another song in a movie, this time at The Tribeca Film Festival, and The Local had found their audience. As one reviewer put it: "Just Show Up by The Local is a piece of art that will have it's place in the time capsule of indie music". (www.indiemusicexplosion.com).High praise indeed, but for The Local, it's all about great songs. So let the inevitable comparisons commence and the influences be heard. The Local is proud of every one of them. And whether those influences be musical, geographical, or occasionally chemical, they are all welcomed here. Always have been, always will. After all, this is New York. So thanks for listening, and thanks for just showing up...
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