BAKERSFIELD, CA - - We finally crossed over to the other side ... The Left Coast, The Land of Fruits and Nuts, La La Land, or just plain California. On our 480 mile trip from Zion National Park to Bakersfield we saw lots of high desert, the world's tallest thermometer (in Baker, CA, which interestingly goes up to 130-degrees) showing 88-degrees. What we really needed was an anemometer to gauge the wind speed as it varied from head wind to side wind and wobbled us around in Lil Blue the entire time.
So here we are in Bakersfield, home to plenty of farming / grape growing and oil operations. But that would be selling the town short if you are a fan of country music. The "Bakersfield Sound" changed the face of country music in about 1960 from slick Nashville production to a more natural sound from the most successful proponents Buck Owens and The Buckaroos and Merle Haggard and The Strangers. Texas born Owens moved to Bakersfield in 1950; died here in 2006 and his legacy lives on at Buck's Chrystal Palace.
FYI: The Beatles covered Owens' first big hit "Act Naturally" and Credence Clearwater Revival had a hit with Owens' song, "Looking out my back door."
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