The Bakersfield Sound Buck Owens, Merle haggard and California Country

Nestled at the southern end of California's San Joaquin Valley, the city of Bakersfield is best known for farming, oil fields, and a unique brand of country music called the Bakersfield Sound. The term is generally used to describe a hard-edged honkytonk sensibility characterized by sharp, twanging Fender Telecaster guitars, crying pedal steel, and straight-ahead country vocals - a sound that thrived in Bakersfield clubs in the 1950s and '60s. "The Bakersfield Sound" is a full-colour exploration of what social and economic factors led to this country music hotbed, as well as a look at the many stars who rose to fame with roots in Bakersfield. Country luminaries with ties to the area include Bob Willis, Leon Payne, Jean Shepherd, Dallas Frazier, Bonnie Owens,Barbara Mandrell, and Ferlin Husky.