William Marcel "Buddy" Collette (August 6, 1921 – September 19, 2010) was an American jazz flutist, saxophonist, and clarinetist and studio musician. He was a founding member of the Chico Hamilton Quintet.

William Marcel Collette was born in Los Angeles on August 6, 1921. He grew up in Watts, surrounded by diverse people. He lived in a house built by his father on cheap land. The neighborhood was Central Gardens. He attended 96th Street School for black students.

Collette, was initially inspired to be a musician by the Woodman brothers, Britt, Coney, and Bill, whose father had schooled them to be professional musicians by grade school. He and others who lived in the area, such as Charles Mingus, looked up to them as they could play multiple instruments and sight read, forming the sound of a much larger band. His family also encouraged him along. They had friends who played instruments that would come to the Collette house and jam. His parents also took him to see Louis Armstrong in concert which had a great impact on him.

Collette began playing piano at age ten, at his grandmother's request. His love for music came not only from his community, but from his parents—his father learned to play the alto sax in his adult years and his mother sang lead vocals in the church choir. Though he continued piano for two years, he "didn`t like it" and switched to his brother`s alto sax which he practiced hard on despite not having formal tutelage. Later he reflected that his early piano training did give him a good foundation to make it in the grade school band.

During middle school, he began formally learning the saxophone. That same year, he formed his first band. They played the music of Dootsie Williams, which Collette's parents had received while at a party. The following year, Collette started a band with Ralph Bledsoe and Raleigh Bledsoe. Together they played for less than a dollar each at parties put on by people in the area on Saturday nights.

Following this, Collette started a third group which eventually included Charles Mingus on bass. He and Mingus became very good friends. Collette was a factor in getting Mingus to switch from cello to bass, as well as his development on the instrument. In Buddy`s first band at age twelve, Mingus was playing bass tuba and cello, but Collette wanted a stringed bass in the group he was putting together as the popularity of bands using it was on the rise. He told Mingus, "If you get a bass, you`ll have a job." meaning his chances in music would be high. In later years, Mingus would often ask Collette for guidance and advice.

When he was fifteen, Collette became a part of the Woodman brothers' band, along with Joe Comfort, George Reed, and Jessie Sailes. One of his first professional gigs with the group was at The Follies; an L.A. burlesque club known for acts such as Joe Yule and showgirls such as Lili St. Cyr

Collette attended Los Angeles` Jordan High School and lead the school`s dance band. During his first couple years of high school, Collette began traveling to Los Angeles in order to form connections with other musicians. At the Million Dollar Theatre, he and his band competed in a battle of the bands, but lost to a band that included Jackie Kelson, Chico Hamilton, and Al Adams. Afterwards, Collette was asked to join the winning band, making twenty-one dollars per week. Later, Charles Mingus joined this band. Collette took up clarinet around the last year of high school. During this time he decided to be a professional musician.