Preston Shannon (October 23, 1947 – January 22, 2018) was an American

electric blues Electric blues is blues music distinguished by the use of electric amplification for musical instruments. The guitar was the first instrument to be popularly amplified and used by early pioneers T-Bone Walker in the late 1930s and John Lee Ho ...

and

soul blues Soul blues is a style of blues music developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s that combines elements of soul music and urban contemporary music. Origin American singers and musicians who grew up listening to the electric blues by artists s ...

guitarist, singer and songwriter.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

noted that "Shannon's specialty is a blend of Southern-fried soul and blues, and his albums and live shows – always with a horn section – are an eclectic mix of danceable, grooving tunes and slow, soulful ballads". Among the songs he wrote are "Beale Street Boogaloo" and "Midnight in Memphis".

Life and career

He was born in

Olive Branch, Mississippi Olive Branch is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, sixth most populous city in Mississippi, US, located in DeSoto County, Mississippi, DeSoto County. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the population was 39,711. Olive Branch ...

, and relocated with his family to nearby

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, at the age of eight. Despite initial misgiving from his

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

parents, Shannon developed an interest in the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

and played part-time with several local bands, while his daytime occupation was with a hardware firm. He began a full-time musical career when he secured a spot in

Shirley Brown Shirley Brown (born January 6, 1947, West Memphis, Arkansas) is an American R&B singer, best known for her million-selling single " Woman to Woman", which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1975. Biography Brown was born in West Memphis, bu ...

's backing ensemble. In 1993, his own Preston Shannon Band played at the

Long Beach Blues Festival The Long Beach Blues Festival, in Long Beach, California, United States, was established fully in 1980, and was one of the largest blues festivals and was the second oldest on the West Coast (first being the San Francisco Blues Festival). It w ...

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

. After being spotted leading his own band in Memphis'

Beale Street Beale Street is a street in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, a distance of approximately . It is a significant location in the city's history, as well as in the history of blues music. Today, ...

clubs, he signed to

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts, by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by A ...

subsidiary, Bullseye Blues, and released his debut solo effort, ''Break the Ice'' in 1994. After this followed the Willie Mitchell produced efforts, ''Midnight in Memphis'' (1996) and ''All in Time'' (1999). However, with no immediate follow-up available, Preston lost momentum. After moving to Title Tunes, he released ''Be with Me Tonight'' (2006). Shannon played at

Memphis in May Memphis in May International Festival is a month-long festival held in Memphis, Tennessee. The festival, which is saluting South Korea in 2025, honors a specific foreign country every year and features many events. The ''Beale Street Music Fest ...

in both 2008 and 2011. In February 2012, Shannon appeared on season two of '' The Voice'', singing " In the Midnight Hour". He was a regular performer at

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

's Blues Club in Memphis. Shannon's final studio recorded album was ''Dust My Broom'' (2014).

Death

Preston died of cancer on January 22, 2018, in Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 70.

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shannon, Preston 1947 births 2018 deaths American blues singers African-American male singers American blues guitarists African-American male guitarists African-American guitarists American male guitarists Electric blues musicians Blues musicians from Mississippi Soul-blues musicians Songwriters from Mississippi People from Olive Branch, Mississippi Guitarists from Mississippi Singers from Memphis, Tennessee 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians African-American male songwriters