Robert C. Bushnell (born 1926) is an American bass player and guitarist who has appeared on dozens of albums and singles as a studio musician, including Bobby Lewis's hit "Tossin' and Turnin'" (1961), "My Boyfriend's Back" by The Angels (1963), "Under the Boardwalk" by The Drifters (1964) and the remixed hit version of Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" (1965).
Bushnell was born in West Philadelphia and attended Sulzberger Junior High School where he first learned how to play bass fiddle. He graduated from West Philadelphia High School in 1945 and left for New York City shortly thereafter. He played occasionally with Jimmy Heath's band in the late 1940s, coinciding with John Coltrane.
He played in the first house band at Philadelphia's Club 421, a lineup led by Charlie Rice, and featuring Vance Wilson, Red Garland, and Johnny Hughes. He went on to become a member of Louis Jordan's bands (both the Orchestra and his Tympany Five). In 1952, he married the band's vocalist, Elaine Dash Robinson, with whom he later formed a group.