Charles Henderson Drayton (5 May 1919 Brooklyn, New York – 31 July 1953 Los Angeles) was an American jazz bassist who performed and recorded from the late 1930s until his death.
Drayton performed with artists that include Louis Jordan, Benny Carter, Dizzy Gillespie, Pete Brown, Ben Webster, Joan Edwards, Timmie Rogers, Savannah Churchill, the Basin Street Boys, Barney Bigard, Billie Holiday, Coleman Hawkins, Woody Herman, Julia Lee, Jack Teagarden, Louis Armstrong, Fletcher Henderson, Russell Jacquet, Marion Abernathy, The Treniers, Billy Taylor, Helen Humes, and Teddy Bunn.
In one such setting, Drayton was the bassist for Ben Webster's first recording session — February 8, 1944, World Broadcasting Systems, New York City — with Hot Lips Page (trumpet), Clyde Hart (piano), Denzil Best (drums).
[8] One of their sons, Bernard "Bernie" Drayton (born 1941), is a studio audio engineer and producer of recording artists and jingles.
[9] Another son, Leslie Clem Drayton (born 1950), is a professional trumpet player and arranger in the Los Angeles area who also has been an advisor to the Live Music Movement Foundation since its inception in 2011.