The Soda Crackers: Serving up The Bakersfield Sound

with a side of Western Swing!

BAKERSFIELD, CA. 2023 – When a band’s square-shaped business card has a photographic image of a

saltine on one side and the two types of tunes available on the other – Country and Western – that’s an

instant clue something unique is on this musical menu.

With a goal to bring back the “classics,” The Soda Crackers – a five-piece band whose average age barely

cracks the 30-something barrier – are in full swing these days. Make that – full Bakersfield Sound with a

nice helping of Western Swing thrown in as a side dish of sorts.

What started as a group of Southern Californian musicians – all with other “day jobs” – gathering in

garage jam sessions turned into their first paid performance in April 2021 for a slot at the “Western

Swing Out Weekender” in Tehachapi, Calif., a mountain community just east of the home to The

Bakersfield Sound.

Bakersfield is also “home base” for two of the Crackers – brothers Zane and Felix Cooper Adamo – so

booking additional gigs in Kern County seemed like a natural next step for the band.

The Soda Crackers have brought their honky-tonk playlist to multiple venues throughout California

including performances at Oildorado Days, the Taft Moose Lodge anniversary event, the opening of The

Bakersfield Sound exhibit at the Kern County Museum, the Gilroy Rodeo, Western Wednesday Night at

Moe’s Alley in Santa Cruz, and, as a bucket-list highlight, gracing the stage at Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace

multiple times to sell-out shows.

“I was born and raised in Bakersfield and grew up on Western Swing music,” says Zane Adamo, 30, who

serves as the band’s rhythm guitarist, lead vocalist and second fiddler. “My brother, Cooper and I started

taking fiddle lessons when we were 6 and 5, then played locally with a group of musicians who knew and

loved The Bakersfield Sound and Western Swing genres when that was THE music of the time.”

Back when the Adamo brothers were too young to drive themselves to the local senior centers where

they once performed, the little fiddlers served up what their older audience craved – a chance to turn

back time.

And now, The Soda Crackers introduce The Bakersfield Sound and Western Swing to concertgoers closer

to their ages as well. Among the band’s most popular musical renditions are: “Faded Love,” “San Antonio

ROse, Lone Star Beer & Bob Wills Music,” “Swingin’ Doors,” “Love’s Gonna Live Here,” and “Mind Your

Own Business.”

And just for a dash more “local ingredients,” lead fiddler Felix Cooper Adamo adds his own vocals and a

crowd-pleasing Kern County-fied verse to “I’ve Been Everywhere, Man” that mentions just about every

little local town, including Arvin, Lamont, Shafter, Wasco and Porterville.

“We knew there could be an audience for these songs being played by a new generation of musicians,”

Zane Adamo says. “It’s been great to see the music live on with original fans of it and then find some

new fans along the way.”

Western Swing is the unmistakably Texas-style sound popularized by fiddle legend Bob Wills in the

1930-40s dance halls. It traveled through Texas, Oklahoma and the lower Great Plains, combining

country string bands with old-time fiddle traditions and big-band jazz.

Dust Bowl migrants brought the music with them as they headed west for better prospects, which

directly influenced Bakersfield greats, Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, who would each contribute to

the twangier, edgier Bakersfield Sound.

What the two musical styles have in common – and where The Soda Crackers happily pick up the baton

with their own stamp – is getting people out on to the dance floor. Sometimes, even when there isn’t

room for one!

“Nothing makes us happier than to watch people move around tables and chairs and make space for

dancing – that’s what this music is meant for,” Adamo says.

In addition to the Adamo brothers, The Soda Crackers also include Nick Green on pedal steel; Jesus

“Chuy” Holguin on stand-up bass; and Matt Sullivan on Lead Guitar. Other “local guest Crackers” have

been known to add to this musical recipe as well.

Although available for hire, The Soda Crackers don’t charge people to attend their concerts. Tips, of

course, are always welcomed – especially since most of the band members drive over the Grapevine for

the opportunity to serve up their special dish of The Bakersfield Sound and Western Swing.

Soda crackers (the food version) might be cheap, but gas sure isn’t!

THE HAYWOODS

The Haywoods, are a Sun Records influenced band from Santa Cruz which originally formed in the 1990's. The Haywoods write and perform original songs while giving a nod to the original artists from that Famous Studio in Memphis. The Haywoods have multiple recording credits including their own albums, Sun Studios Tribute and Film soundtrack credits. The Haywoods have shared the stage with : Big Sandy and the Fly Rite Boys ; Kim Lenz ; The Paladins ; Wayne Hancock ; Deke Dickerson to name a few.

The Soda Crackers & The Haywoods