Genre Origins and History
The Bakersfield sound is a country music style that emerged in Bakersfield, California, between the mid- and late-1950s. Bakersfield was the first form of country music to be extensively influenced by rock & roll, as well as the first to rely primarily on electric instruments and a distinct backbeat. Bakersfield’s sound became one of the most popular and vital country music genres in the 1960s, kicking off a renaissance of honky-tonk music and inspiring subsequent country rock and country outlaw singers (Martinez 89).
In the 1950s and 1960s, the Bakersfield sound emerged at honky-tonk venues like Blackboard and on local TV networks in Bakersfield and across California (Martinez 89). The city, which was primarily known for farming and oil production, attracted Dust Bowl refugees as well as those from Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and other Midwest states. The Okies’ enormous move to California ensured that their music would continue and flourish, as would their search for supporters in California’s Central Valley. Bakersfield was a reaction to Nashville’s well-crafted string orchestra and rich sound, which had gained popularity in the late 1950s.
Buck Owens
Buck Owens was the pioneer of this form of music, whose tale I would want to relate. He did not become popular until the late 1950s, when his song “Second Fiddle” soared to the top of the Billboard Country chart (Encyclopædia Britannica). Several months later, his singles Under Your Spell Again and Above and Beyond peaked at number four and three, respectively. Bud Hobbs, an MGM recording performer, released Louisiana Swing in 1954 with Buck Owens on the main guitar, Bill Woods on the piano, and Oscar Whittington and Jelly Sanders on violin (Martinez 90).
“Louisiana Swing” was the first song recorded in the famed Bakersfield sound and made a significant contribution to country music (Encyclopædia Britannica). Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, and the Buckaroos were among the artists who helped establish the Bakersfield sound in the early 1960s. It quickly became one of the most popular sounds in country music, spawning rock bands and inspiring future country performers such as Dwight Yoakam, Marty Stuart, The Mavericks, and The Derailers.
Buck Owens could afford to ignore established musical trends in favor of promoting his own after many successful albums. About 20 of the musician’s works became instant blockbusters, and an increasing number of popular musicians gravitated toward his work (Encyclopædia Britannica). Owens is known to have influenced numerous musicians, including the Beatles, and one of his compositions, “Act Naturally,” was recorded by Ringo Starr, a member of the Beatles. Thus, the artist significantly influenced country music, releasing numerous songs and promoting them to the masses.
Jean Shepherd
Jean Shepherd, one of country music’s earliest notable female musicians, is the second musician to make a substantial contribution to the genre. She was born Ollie Imogene Shepherd and was an American singer and composer. She was born on November 21, 1933, in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma (Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum). Jean spent her early years in Visalia, California, near Bakersfield.
Since music was such a vital component of her identity, it was only appropriate that in her teenage years, she helped form and become the main vocalist of the all-female group The Melody Ranch Girls. She was a bass guitarist for the Melody Ranch Girls, a group founded in 1948(Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum).
A brief period afterward, through Capitol Records, Shepard’s A Dear John Letter became the first big country hit to completely incorporate Bakersfield musicians, marking an essential addition to the genre (Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum). Many of her early recordings featured notable members of the Bakersfield movement, such as Lewis Tully and Speedy West. Thus, the performer significantly influenced country music by presenting it from a different perspective.
Works Cited
“Buck Owens.” Encyclopædia Britannica, EncyclopædiaBritannica, inc.
“Jean Shepard.” Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, 2023.
Martinez, Amanda Marie. “Suburban cowboy.” California History, vol. 98, no. 1, 2021, pp. 83–97.