“The Bakersfield Sound: Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and California Country” includes more than 100 artifacts and an overlay of audiovisual material.

Kyle Young, museum director, said the West Coast sound invigorated and reinvented country music as the performers knew it. A news release says Bakersfield’s dance halls and honky-tonks provided respite for rambunctious workers who wanted to hear boogiefied music and swing sounds.

The exhibit also highlights Bill Woods, “Cousin” Herb Henson, Ferlin Husky, Billy Mize, Fuzzy Owen, Bonnie Owens, Jelly Sanders, Jean Shepard, Red Simpson and Lewis Talley.

The 5,000-square-foot exhibit, narrated by Dwight Yoakam, runs through Dec. 31, 2013.