Sonny Salsbury

Sonny Salsbury wrote contemporary Christian music for use in youth-oriented church services. His contributions, in that sense, may be compared to those made in the late '60s by such pre-Jesus music pioneers as Ralph Carmichael, John Fischer, Kurt Kaiser, Jimmy and Carol Owens, and Ray Repp. His songs tended to have a ready-for-Vacation-Bible-School sound to them that would have seemed hokey to those outside the church but did help to prepare congregations for a more pop-oriented sound than was evident in the traditional hymnals. His best known work among the Jesus people was probably Backpacker's Suite, which offers an album of worship music for campers, with obvious emphasis on appreciation for the glories of nature and the Creator they reveal. Written and produces by Salsbury, the music on the record was actually performed by a choir, accompanied by an orchestra and an assortment of guitars, banjos,and other acoustic instruments. Blue Samuel Flying - a popular '70s reviewer for Harmony magazine - described it as "three years late," providing the kind of production that might have satisfied young Christians' thirst for contemporary worship music in the days before the Jesus movement revival drastically increased their options.

Powell, M. A. (2003). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music (2nd ed.). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers.