THOUSANDS of people packed The Pantiles for the annual Local and Live outdoor music festival.

Organiser Paul Dunton, who also played, selected 50 artists to play their own original compositions, with headline slots going to The Logan Wilson Band, Origami Dinosaur, The Dan Clews Band and The Charlie Rivers Band.

Mr Dunton said: "Local and Live 2010 has proved to be the best yet, I am delighted to say that we had our biggest turnout yet and the overall standard of musicianship was simply first-class.

"It was just fantastic to see The Pantiles come alive with the vibrant and creative sounds from all of the 50 local acts that took part. 60 local volunteers worked tirelessly over the weekend, 264 local musicians performed, 30 local businesses sponsored the event and an estimated 4,000 enjoyed the festivities on each day."

Headliners Origami Dinosaur, a popular five-piece who play funk and quirky pop using sampled beats and have earned themselves a reputation in Kent as a unique and unmissable party band, headlined Saturday.

Local singer-songwriter Dan Clews, accompanied by his band, headlined the Sunday with his folk/pop tinged tunes which draw their sonic structure from a diverse spectrum of styles, places and people.

Headlining day four were popular Tunbridge Wells quartet The Charlie Rivers Band. One time solo artist Charlie Rivers has witnessed an organic growth in his music which has slowly but surely taken on a full band sound.

Giving things a darker edge on Monday were local acoustic favourites Night Without Sleep, whose performance was met with particular fervour.

Another notable name on the running order was Big Fish Little Fish, who opened proceedings on the final day having won the inaugural under-16 Local And Live songwriting contest.