"Local Girls" is a song by British rock musician
Graham Parker
Graham Thomas Parker (born 18 November 1950) is an English singer-songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the British band Graham Parker & the Rumour.
Life and career Early career (1960s–1976)
Parker was born in Hackney, East L ...
, recorded with his backing band
the Rumour
The Rumour was an English rock band in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They are best known as the backup band for Graham Parker, whose early records (from 1976 to 1980) were credited to Graham Parker & The Rumour. However, The Rumour also ...
. The song was released on his 1979 album, ''
Squeezing Out Sparks''.
Lyrically inspired by the girls in Parker's hometown, "Local Girls" was meant to capture life in English suburbia. The song was released as a single in the US in 1979, but did not chart. The song has since become one of Parker's most famous songs.
Background
"Local Girls" was written by Graham Parker as a commentary on the girls from his youth that were attracted to soldiers at an army camp near his town; Parker recalled in an interview, "You might fancy some local girls, but you know there's no chance. She thinks you're just a local kid that everybody knows".
He later said in an interview on his website,
The song was originally written as a part of a larger concept on the ''Squeezing Out Sparks'' album to capture suburban life in England. He commented on this, "In
'Squeezing Out Sparks''I was kind of attempting a concept album about the suburbs of England, or at least trying to capture a vague approximation of suburban life. This idea succeeds in "
Saturday Nite Is Dead" and "Local Girls" particularly well. I guess I drifted off the mark there for the rest of the record because the concept turned out to be a little confining for a whole album. I'm too restless to stick with such a narrow program".
Release
"Local Girls" was released as the first and only US single from ''
Squeezing Out Sparks,'' backed with a live version of
the Jackson 5's "
I Want You Back." According to radio personality T. Morgan, then a member of the staff of
Arista Records
Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...
, the song was intended to be Parker's breakthrough hit on Arista; he recalled, "'Local Girls' was the choice to be the single to take Graham Parker to new vistas. It was to be his first hit single. We sent lovely ladies (all local) to the radio stations to hand deliver the record."
A promotion for the song in Birmingham, Alabama saw Arista reps dress up as women on stage.
However, despite promising regional radio play, the song failed to chart. While the single was unsuccessful on the charts, the ''Squeezing Out Sparks'' album ultimately proved to be Parker's most successful album in the US and the song has become, in the words of ''Chronograms Peter Aaron, Parker's "signature hit".
A music video for the song was also created, featuring Parker and the Rumour performing in a living room set.
Live versions
Parker and the Rumour have continued to play "Local Girls" live, including during their reunion in the 2010s. The band played a version of the song in a concert for
Judd Apatow's movie ''
This Is 40'', though it did not make the final version of the film.
This performance of "Local Girls" was later debuted on ''
Diffuser.fm'' and, with the rest of the concert, was released by
Shout! Factory
Shout! Factory is an American home video and music company founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases include previously released feature films, classic and contemporary television series, animation, live music, and comedy ...
.
Cover versions
A supergroup consisting of
Pat DiNizio,
Gary Lucas, and
Frank Black covered "Local Girls" for a Graham Parker tribute album entitled ''Piss & Vinegar: The Songs of Graham Parker''. When asked about Black, Parker responded, "I like the
Pixies. ...
emust be one hell of a dude".
References
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1979 singles
1979 songs
Graham Parker songs
Arista Records singles
Song recordings produced by Jack Nitzsche