The Bakersfield Sound: How the Dust Bowl Changed Music

Carolyn Weaver

Carolyn Weaver

Professor Fleury

Honors Global Environmental Change

19 November 2011

The Bakersfield Sound: How the Dust Bowl Changed Music

One step across the threshold of the run down bar and suddenly you are immersed in boisterous laughter and dancing, the pungent scent of alcohol, and blaring honky-tonk music that fills the air. On stage a group of colorfully dressed musicians in cowboy hats, complete with bass, fiddle, banjo, guitar, and vocals, entertain the joyful crowd of migrant workers winding down after a long days work in the fields. This was a typical scene in cities like Bakersfield, California following migration of people from the plains to the west to find a new life after losing their farms during the Dust Bowl in the 1930s. The introduction of dust bowl refugees to California helped pave the way for the emergence of the Bakersfield Sound, a term used to describe the new type of country-folk music introduced to the west by migrant musicians that brought their musical traditions with them. Experts agree that the dust bowl migration was almost wholly responsible for the emergence of this new sound that had significant impact on later country musicians.

Understanding the cultural impact of the migration of people from the plains states to California during the Dust Bowl is crucial to understanding the birth of the Bakersfield Sound. By 1940, 2.5 million people had left the plains. An estimated 200,000 people, mainly from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, and Missouri, packed up their most prized belongings and began the long, difficult journey to California. The Dust Bowl affected every single type of person in that area. The migrants were people from all walks of lifeless than

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half were farmers, and many were by no means poor(Gregory 12). California meant safety

from dust storms and related illnesses, and the promise of healthy farmland and work. Also, positive media portrayal of California living and job opportunities made the influx of people only continue to grow as the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression wore on. Californians did not openly welcome the migrants. The cultural differences and increased job competition caused great tension between the two groups and there existed a mutual hostility of migrant for local and local for migrant (Stein 58). Many of these poor migrants set up camps along the roadside after arriving in California, but after complaints from local governments and hostility from locals, President Roosevelts Farm Security Administration built thirteen camps that had self-governing communities and could hold up to three hundred families who worked for their food and board. These camps helped lessen animosity between locals and migrants and also became pivotal in allowing the Okies, as they were nicknamed, to freely and safely embrace their culture and more relevantly, play their distinctively unique music.

This music allowed the migrants to express their culture and led to regaining confidence in their homeland once it became popular across the country. During this era the Nashville music industry was the dominant source of country and became known for its focus on lucrative, professional country music. Nashville producers focused on clean, formal production and supported only artists that fell within their normal demographic, which is why this new Okie country music was so revolutionary to the genre. It had a new, unpolished sound and focused on music as something everyone could participate in and use as a creative outlet for storytelling, stress relief, and fun. Local observers of the migrants found it impossible to ignore the importance of music in their leisure activitiesmusic brought people together in the labor camps(Gregory 450). Not only was the sound completely

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different than its Nashville counterpart, the content was as well. The country music flowing from Nashville at the time retainedaconservativecore,celebratingtraditionalvalues like family,church,nation,andwork(Haslam 10). Instead of following this pattern, migrants used music as a way to reminisce about the homes they left behind, lament about struggles they all could relate to, and explain their plight to local Californians. The average, mundane topics usually utilized in country music were contrasted as the honkytonk singers put fresh colors on country musics palette: chill blue of loss, the dull grey of loneliness, the fiery red of illicit passion (Russell 207). This new style of honky-tonk music began spreading like wildfire across the west. It appealed to Californians with its notoriously infectious dance-inspiring sound and also to Okies because it communicated values and symbols which meant a great deal to South westerners in California(Gregory 458). This music quickly became popular in bars and heard on radio stations and paved the path for the development of the Bakersfield Sound. The new style gained fans quickly throughout the west and by 1937 many [radio] station owners were convinced that they needed at least one singing cowboy to round out their schedule(Stein 56). Before the introduction of Dust Bowl refugees, this cowboy-hillbilly sound had a miniscule following and often was seen as more of a performance act than actual music. As people began loving the new music style, tensions eased between locals and Okies, and the migrants began to gain confidence again in their roots. They began to strongly identify with their music and even dress like the stereotypical cowboy singer as they learned a certain self confidence from the music, a confidence that helped them turn the Okie label from something negative to positive (Gregory 468). This new musical style helped the migrants assimilate and paved the way for the emergence of the

Bakersfield Sound movement.

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The Maddox Brothers and Rose was one of the earliest groups to popularize this type

of music. Nicknamed Americas Most Colorful Hillbilly Band, the four Maddox brothers

and their sister Rose lived up to their title with vibrant cowboy style outfits and upbeat tunes.

Californians loved the new sound, completely different from the polished and lifeless tunes coming out of Nashville(travel magazine). Once their fame began to grow, Californians stopped obsessing over the Nashville country as the Maddox Brothers and Rose made a lot of the country music that followed seem awfully serious and dull (Russell 251). They also appealed to fellow Okies with their relatable lyrics about the migrant plight and own personal life struggles. In 1933, the young musicians hitchhiked on railroads with their two sharecropping parents from Alabama to California in hopes of a more promising future in the west. All of the children showed musical talent from an early age, and they began playing as a group in local honky tonk bars. Their big break happened when they first appeared on radio KTRB Modesto in 1937. Their fame grew quickly and by the late 1940s the Maddox brothers and rose had a nationwide following(Gregory 457). People responded overwhelmingly positive to The Maddox Brothers and Rose new look, new sound and new approach to music. As one of the earliest groups to play this new type of music, they had significant influence on following musicians and country music as a whole.

This new genre has many specific musical and performance elements that made it completely different than contemporary country music of the time. The Maddox Brothers and Roses song, Honky Tonkin, released in 1965, but played much earlier by the band in many performances, is one of my personal favorites. It embodies the perfect example of a honky tonk country tune in many ways. The song urges its listeners to forget their worries and instead enjoy the music and dance, a common message in Okie style songs. The opening

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lyrics when you are sad and lonely... We'll go honky tonkin' round the town perfectly conveys this message. This message also describes the musics social function within the migrant population. Honky tonk music provided a way for Okies to get together, reminisce

about their homes, and forget their troubles. This song also shows the way The Maddox

Brothers and Rose changed country music by introducing the comedic aspect of storytelling and performance that still holds true of country today. What the record buyers and radio listeners of New Deal America now demanded of their country music was that it tell them stories, which is exactly what they did through their music (Russell 156). In the chorus, instead of focusing on the professional, choral sound of the music, Rose lets her voice embody a stereotypical yodeling country western sound every time she sings honky, which adds a comedic element characteristic of this group. Also, the call and response between Rose as the lead singer and the brothers backing up with repeats, talking and laughing during instrumental breaks, depicts something never seen before in the commercially clean type of country coming out of Nashville. The laid back performance made the band seem more personable, emphasizing that the musics main purpose was enjoyment. They focused on the care free nature of music and this attitude paved the way for future bands, exemplifying their huge influence in making the migrant music famous as they became one of the first famous bands playing music stapled as Bakersfield Sound.

The Bakersfield Sound truly emerged and peaked in popularity about twenty years after the Dust Bowl migration, in the 1950s and 1960s. Buck Owens emerged as the most influential Bakersfield Sound artist for a variety of reasons. Owens parents were both farmers and like many families during the dustbowl, moved away from their home in Texas in 1937 and settled in Arizona. Owens learned music from a very early age because Mrs.Owens also

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played the piano andmusic provided somerelieffromatoughlife (Haslam 26). His mothers emphasis on the importance of music during his childhood led Buck to realize his talent early on and he actually dropped out of school in the eighth grade to begin working and

pursuing his true passion, music. He taught himself to play the acoustic and steel guitar in

addition to the fiddle. In 1945, he teamed up with another guitarist named Theryl Ray Britten

and the pair began performing regularly on local radio stations. This gave Buck Owens his true start as he became know in the public music sphere. During the late 1940s, Owens performed at honky-tonk bars with the group Mac's Skillet Lickers. In 1951 he moved to Bakersfield, California after visiting and falling in love with the music scene. Once in Bakersfield, he briefly played with Bill Woods & The Orange Blossom Playboys before forming his own band, The Schoolhouse Playboys. Owens credits Bakersfield with largely influencing his music and called it his true home because of its role in forming his own characteristic sound. He gained popularity during the 1950s when he contributed to a number of singles produced by Capitol Records. In 1960 he was named the Most Promising Country and Western Singer byBillboard, which proved true when Buck Owens and the Buckaroos released their first number one hit in 1963, "Act Naturally. Buck Owens fame only grew from there and by 1965, many people called him the Baron of Buckersfield because of the influence he had on the Bakersfield music scene (Sisk 101). Even as his stardom grew, his music still retained the classic excitingstylethatrefusedtoabandonthe Bakersfieldbase [and] he brought the central valley town with him to his heights (Haslam 207). He also joined Roy Clark as the front man for the TV show "Hee-Haw" in 1969, which featured country music and rural humor. This show stressed the importance of comedy in music and added to his fame as an increasing number or people became loyal fans of the show and

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subsequently, Buck Owens. The ability of country musicians to laugh at themselves and their culture has been a strain of humor at the heart of the genre historically (Ellis). Hee-Haw perfectly showed this and was a pivotal point in his career because it solidified Owens ability to embrace this humor. Even with his talent and humor, Buck Owens would never have achieved this level of fame without crucial supporting people like his talented guitar player Don Rich and his laid back producer Ken Nelson. Nelsons hands off approach embodied the exact opposite of the Nashville system, and is what made Buck Owens sound so unique. Without the normal restraints placed on so many other country musicians of the time, Owens had the ability to embrace his Okie music roots and form a sound completely his own. With the help of these people and his dedication to maintaining a distinctive sound, Buck Owens became the quintessential California country musician(Haslam 216).

Buck Owens, My Heart Skips a Beat, exemplifies the new elements and approach of the Bakersfield Sound. Released in 1964, it became his third number one hit on the country charts, spending seven weeks as number one. The picking style of guitar, instead of strumming, in addition to the heavy drum beat and use of pedal steel guitar, contributes to the rockabilly sound, a term used to describe the rock influenced hillbilly country style Bakersfield Sound embodied. These stylistic choices depict something completely different than anything before, and expanded on the ideas and sounds of previous honky tonk bands like The Maddox Brothers and Rose. Also, before the time of lengthy guitar solos in rock music, Buck Owens revolutionized country music with his mini breaks, like the one in this song. He uses the steel pedal guitar for that rock sound so characteristic of his music as his band hoots and cheers him on, in the similar style of The Maddox Brothers and Rose. The conversational lyrics depict another unique characteristic of Buck Owens songs and the

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Bakersfield Sound approach to music. The song begins with the catchy chorus and then breaks for the story before returning again to the chorus. This A-B-A pattern actually has roots in classic twelve bar blues, showing how Owens fused a huge variety of musical styles

together. According to Buck Owens himself during an interview for a BBC documentary, he

couldnt understand the silky, syrupy stuff flowing out of Nashville and wanted to invent a unique sound from a fusion of country, rock, honky tonk and folk to create something that just made you want to shut up and dance (BBC). His description perfectly shows everything the Bakersfield Sound came to embody: a less polished country music style used for fun and entertainment, not simply for commercial success or revenue generation. When Buck Owens is onstage, singing those songs, the years fall away. He is as energized by the audience as his guitar is by electricity, and the young man in flight from the cotton fields is present again(Newsweek). This timeless energy in conjunction with revolutionary new approach to music explains how his music had such a huge influence on later musicians of various types.

The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Rascal Flatts and Donavon Frankenreiter are some of the most famous bands clearly influenced by the Bakersfield Sound. The Beatles adopted the Bakersfield call and response form in addition to its goal of wanting to make people dance. After listening to Buck Owens, this influence became extremely clear, especially when comparing his upbeat tunes like Ive Got a Tiger By the Tail with The Beatles upbeat ones like I Want to Hold Your Hand. The songs have similar guitar patterns paired with duo vocalization harmonies that create danceable music. Also, they both utilize guitar solo breaks with happy riffs that are written in generally major chords. The Rolling Stones, with songs like Hang Fire, take the next step away from country and more towards hard rock, but still use aspects of the Bakersfield Sound. Their fast paced dance rhythms and

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heavy drums with complementing guitars have roots in the Bakersfield Sound style. The Eagles also seem to have been influenced by Buck Owens. The bittersweet lyrics and slow melody of Buck Owens Together Again is reminiscent of The Eagles Tequila Sunrise. The Eagles retain more of the twangy country style than other Bakersfield-influenced bands. Modern day bands like Rascal Flatts also have clear rockabilly influence and retain musical elements characteristic of the Bakersfield Sound. Rascal Flatts utilizes lyrics that fall in the similar storytelling pattern as those of The Maddox Brothers and Buck Owens. For example, in their song Shed be California, the colloquial verses resemble the Maddox Brothers Small Town Mama, both idealizing a specific small-town woman through descriptive verses and catchy, upbeat choruses. Also Rascal Flatts is known for their rock-country sound with guitar solos and dance style music that clearly draws inspiration from Bakersfield Sound musicians. Donavon Frankenreiter is a modern day musician that fuses country, folk, and rock in a style similar to Buck Owens. After recently seeing him perform live, I think he perfectly represents a modern musician largely influenced by the Bakersfield Sound. Wearing cowboy boots and a turquoise studded western guitar strap, he alternated between mellow folk songs and more danceable tunes, most with positive messages of moving forward through strife. Owens song Loves Gonna Live Here and Frankenreiter's Life, Love, and Laughter have similar messages and show this connection. Frankenreiter is a solid example of how fans of Buck Owens still incorporate his style into their music today. In addition to these central musicians previously analyzed, there are countless groups influenced by the Bakersfield Sound including the Grateful Dead, The Byrds,The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Desert Rose Band,Dwight Yoakam, Dave Alvin, The Mavericks, and many more. The Bakersfield Sound influence reaches beyond country, it was a movement that left an impact on music in general.

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In addition to affecting musicians and their music style, the concentration of musicians in Bakersfield, California also helped the local economy. When migrants first began moving to Bakersfield, it stimulated the economy of this small town that the Great Depression had

taken a major toll on. This stimulation continued and as a result, many small guitar companies

set up shop in Bakersfield in the 1960s as musicians continued to settle there because of the

citys musical focus. Soon Bakersfield was widely know not only for its famous musicians, but also for these music shops and how they transformed this poor town into a musical oasis. In 2012 theCountry Music Hall of Fameopened an exhibit dedicated to the Bakersfield Sound and its importance. The exhibit highlights the origins of this music type, the effects on Bakersfield County, famous musicians of the movement, and its impact on later music.

The Bakersfield Sound had a lasting influence on music and steered it in a direction that it may never have taken. Without the Dust Bowl and musical traditions brought by Okie migrants to California, the Bakersfield Sound probably would never have emerged and country music today may be drastically altered. Famous Bakersfield sound artists, including The Maddox Brothers and Rose and Buck Owens, both had unique musical stylistic and performance elements that made them revolutionary to music during this era. These artists had lasting effects on music that still carry through the country music scene today.

So, next time you step into a local bar on country music night, imagine yourself transported back seventy years in the past to a honky tonk bar in California watching some Okie band and the birth of the Bakersfield Sound. Maybe those characteristic guitar solos and dance rhythms of the country-pop tune playing would never have become emerged without Bakersfield music. Or perhaps the band in the music video being played above the bar would not be proudly wearing cowboy hats and boots without the Maddox Brothers and Rose first

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sporting that apparel. Remember as you tap your foot, sip on a beer, and sing along to your most beloved country tune, that every song played on the speakers may have never existed without those crucial beginnings and the Dust Bowl migration.

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Brown, Patricia Leigh, and Patricia Leigh Brown.Oklahomans Try to Save their California Culture; Bittersweet Memories of Migrant Camps.(National Pages). 151 Vol. Print.

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