Willie Mitchell and Memphis are practically synonyms for smooth soul, and Preston Shannon seems like he wouldn’t mind being added to that lexicon.

One of the brightest stars on the contemporary Beale Street scene, Preston’s a little smoother than most, but not without grit. His vocals suggest a less-tortured, mellower Otis Redding, while his guitar leads sound less like a battle than an intense negotiation between King – Albert, Freddie, and B.B., specifically.

Preston’s third CD, All In Time, extends the superb vibe conjured up by his last CD, 1996’s “Midnight In Memphis.” Mitchell and his session men – still among the best in the business – return to support Shannon on a mostly-original album. By “original,” I’m talking songwriting credits only, because Shannon is bleeding elegantly all over these tracks, be they fine band-penned works like “Tired Of The Ghetto Bringing Me Down” and the straight (and hilarious) blues “Welfare Woman” or well chosen remakes like Bobby Womack’s “That’s The Way I Feel About Cha”.

The biggest and most pleasant surprise, however, has to be Preston’s reworking of – get this – Prince’s “Purple Rain.” It starts out simply reproducing the original track, highlights the gospel threads that were already there, slips in a little parody, and then effortlessly disembowels it with a few stinging leads. Of course, he follows that display with a wonderfully mindless instrumental shuffle called “Cold Beer Good Time.” But then, that’s Memphis for you.