Jesse Goplen to offer webcast song series

Come January, millions of Americans will be gleefully counting down the days of the George W. Bush era and gearing up to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama as our 44th President.

Northern California based Acoustic Folk-Rock Singer/Songwriter Jesse Goplen is doing his partying online, sharing heartfelt, socially incisive songs from throughout his career with a series of 45-minute webcasts on his site (www.jessegoplen.com). The webcasts began on January 1st and will run for twenty consecutive nights at 8:30p.m. Pacific time, culminating with a performance the night of January 20th, just hours after Obama is sworn in as president.

Broadcast from a new home studio in his hometown of Arcata before a small studio audience, the web concerts feature a mix of songs from his recently released, critically acclaimed debut album Cowboy and brand new material which he will be recording for his next release. He is also including tunes from early in his career, including those he wrote in the winter of 1997-98 while serving a six month jail sentence for marijuana possession—which marked his very first efforts at songwriting.

Each night is featuring a unique and spontaneous set list with new arrangements and altered tempos even for songs that Goplen’s fans have been listening to for a long time. Audiophiles around the world will be excited about the sound quality of the webcasts, which is streaming via RealPlayer's 128 kbps AAC technology, offering higher fidelity than standard MP3s and runs circles around the music we hear on YouTube and Myspace. The latest version of RealPlayer is required, available for free at www.real.com.

A selection of the online concerts that have already taken place are available for viewing at http://www.youtube.com/user/jessegoplen

Goplen will be following his January webcast series with his first ever full-fledged solo tour, launching in Hollywood on January 23rd before heading to the Midwest.

“My main goal in doing this series of free online shows is fan appreciation, sharing my music with people without any borders or restrictions,” he says. “I hope to have something for people who are already familiar with my songs by trying out some new arrangements, and also reach new fans in different places in anticipation of my upcoming tour. In addition to new versions of songs from Cowboy and older material, I am also debuting many new songs for the first time during these shows.”

Fans can share their thoughts about Goplen’s online shows and tour dates in the new forum section of his website.

Goplen—who cites influences such as Johnny Cash, John Lennon and legendary blues/gospel singer/guitarist Reverend Gary Davis—is known for his hard-hitting lyrics and minor key style. Fans of blues, country, rock and folk have all found something to connect with in his original tunes.