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Grant Langston

Stand Up Man

(MSG; US: 9 Jun 2009; UK: 9 Jun 2009)

It would be easy to dismiss Grant Langston as a trad-country parodist if he didn’t write such unfailingly infectious tunes and weren’t such a skilled singer (though his nasal vocals might wake up the kids). His tongue is about to bust through his cheek on much of Stand Up Guy, his fourth album, with a half-joking smirk somewhere in Robbie Fulks territory, but there’s enough round choruses and Telecaster snap on the record to get under your skin or to at least keep poker night humming along. “Burt Reynolds Movie Brawl” provides a treat for Stroker Ace enthusiasts, but “Damn Good Day”, with its pick-tastic guitar fire is the hot-stepping keeper. The dedication to simple structures and wry lyrics might ultimately limit Stand Up Man‘s shelf life, but it’ll certainly be fun while it lasts.

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Steve Leftridge has written about music, film, and books for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, No Depression, and PlaybackSTL. He holds an MA in literature from the University of Missouri, for whom he is an adjunct teacher, and he's been teaching high school English and film in St. Louis since 1998, which, along with his band, his sports announcing jobs, and his wife and kids (ages seven and four), keeps him hopping.


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27 Jan 2005
At his finer moments, Langston's lyrics are reminiscent of the adept wordplay of fellow country crooner Lyle Lovett.
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