Calvin Newton (October 28, 1929 – March 3, 2023)[1] was an American gospel singer from West Frankfort, Illinois.
Newton won a Kentucky Golden Gloves championship, retiring one opponent in just 23 seconds.
[2] In his late teens Newton was recruited to join the Blackwood Brothers, then a prominent Southern gospel quartet.
From 1953 until 1956 Newton sang lead for the Oak Ridge Boys, and later he was a co-founder of the Sons of Song, one of the first pioneering acts in what would become the CCM industry.
According to biographer Russ Cheatham, Newton was "super-handsome, athletic, and charged with sexual charisma...Audacious, Newton never turned down a dare... [hedonistic] -- reckless driving, heavy romancing, and addictive pill popping.