--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I started playing with this band, the…" description: "\"I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players. It was my introduction into funk. So I went and got a James Brown record. 'Black Caesar' is a ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg" --- # I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players… ![“I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players. It was my introduction into funk. So I went and got a James Brown record. 'Black Caesar' is a film score, but it's so dope.” quote by Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg) > “I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players. It was my introduction into funk. So I went and got a James Brown record. 'Black Caesar' is a film score, but it's so dope.” [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Discovering funk through a band led to exploring James Brown’s music, inspiring creative work. **In simple terms:** Exploring funk inspired creativity. Key Takeaway Seek new musical influences. Themes music influence creativity discovery Mood enthusiastic curious Type creative inspirational When to use this quote - band practice - record listening - songwriting Key Concepts cultural music history artistic inspiration Questions to Reflect On - What music sparks your creativity? - How does genre shape your art? A Different Perspective May not resonate with all. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Band](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/band/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funk/) [Funk Went](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funk-went-1860230/) [Introduction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/introduction/) [Introduction Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/introduction-funk-1860227/) [Music making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-making/) [Polyester Players](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polyester-players-1860228/) [Score Dope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/score-dope-1860229/) [Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started/) ## Related quotes > [Funk could very easily be called jazz, but you call it funk. Does that really matter? People dig that they associate themselves with certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/funk-could-very-easily-be-called-jazz-but-you-call-it-funk-does-that/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [If you got a booty, you're going to dance to disco, funk, you know, whatever's going on. Funk is going to be involved in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clinton/if-you-got-a-booty-you-re-going-to-dance-to-disco-funk-you-know/) [George Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clinton/) > [Occasionally pick up speed-for 2 minutes, tops-then settle back into your former pace. Sometimes this is all you need to snap out of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-plaatjes/occasionally-pick-up-speed-for-2-minutes-tops-then-settle-back-into/) [Mark Plaatjes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-plaatjes/) > [I've played death metal, punk rock, hardcore, funk... I've done it all. And all there really is music and at the end of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristian-machado/i-ve-played-death-metal-punk-rock-hardcore-funk-i-ve-done-it-all-and/) [Cristian Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristian-machado/) > [The Meters are, I think, the most influential group in our time to come out of New Orleans, to have changed and introduced us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-scofield/the-meters-are-i-think-the-most-influential-group-in-our-time-to-come/) [John Scofield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-scofield/) > [When I do uptempo songs, I like to bring in the funk and world music and different elements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-hill/when-i-do-uptempo-songs-i-like-to-bring-in-the-funk-and-world-music/) [Judith Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-hill/) > [The tapes we were making would jump around with different styles, just quick parts of different songs. Hip-hop to jazz to funk to whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ad-rock/the-tapes-we-were-making-would-jump-around-with-different-styles-just/) [Ad-Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ad-rock/) > [“Those people obviously don't know who I think I am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-wesley-jr/those-people-obviously-don-t-know-who-i-think-i-am/) [Fred Wesley Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-wesley-jr/) > [I have never met one person who likes Grand Funk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritchie-blackmore/i-have-never-met-one-person-who-likes-grand-funk/) [Ritchie Blackmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritchie-blackmore/) > [I can only get my drummer in the winter; he plays with Grand Funk all summer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-seger/i-can-only-get-my-drummer-in-the-winter-he-plays-with-grand-funk-all/) [Bob Seger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-seger/) > [One of my strongest memories is my father playing bongos in the living room in Detroit listening to Motown radio. He was this skinny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/one-of-my-strongest-memories-is-my-father-playing-bongos-in-the/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Funk never dies. It is eternal. It just smells a little different from time to time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/questlove/funk-never-dies-it-is-eternal-it-just-smells-a-little-different-from/) [Questlove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/questlove/) > [ Basically I made her \[ Sara Pocock\] listen to funk music for a good month, a nonstop stream of George Clinton. I was talking… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-vaughn/basically-i-made-her-sara-pocock-listen-to-funk-music-for-a-good/) [Baron Vaughn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-vaughn/) > [A good movie can take you out of your dull funk and the hopelessness that so often goes with slipping into a theatre; a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauline-kael/a-good-movie-can-take-you-out-of-your-dull-funk-and-the-hopelessness/) [Pauline Kael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauline-kael/) > [I don't do drugs anymore... than, say, the average touring funk band.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-don-t-do-drugs-anymore-than-say-the-average-touring-funk-band/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) ## More by Kamasi Washington > [Every day we're here is an opportunity to do what we can to make the world right, to help someone close or far from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/every-day-we-re-here-is-an-opportunity-to-do-what-we-can-to-make-the/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [I was hearing music in my head and trying to play it on the clarinet, but it didn't match.' Then, literally the first day,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/i-was-hearing-music-in-my-head-and-trying-to-play-it-on-the-clarinet/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [So much good music has been looked over because of preconceived notions of genre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/so-much-good-music-has-been-looked-over-because-of-preconceived/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [It's either, like, 'Your album was the first jazz album I listened to,' or, like, 'My friend took me to this show, and I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/it-s-either-like-your-album-was-the-first-jazz-album-i-listened-to-or/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [This precious thing of empathy and love and understanding is something we have to hold and appreciate and protect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/this-precious-thing-of-empathy-and-love-and-understanding-is/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [By the time I was about 15, I was out playing gigs and knew I was going to be a musician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/by-the-time-i-was-about-15-i-was-out-playing-gigs-and-knew-i-was/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [We learned at a young age, with our dad, that even if you weren't doing something, you had to look like you were, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/we-learned-at-a-young-age-with-our-dad-that-even-if-you-weren-t-doing/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [West Coast hip hop was the sound of my neighbourhood. It was something I could relate to because it had a sound that felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/west-coast-hip-hop-was-the-sound-of-my-neighbourhood-it-was-something/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [We've played so many places where, if you asked people, 'Do you like jazz?' they would be like, 'Not at all.' But I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/we-ve-played-so-many-places-where-if-you-asked-people-do-you-like/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [In the '80s, a lot of kids, if you were kind of bright, you got bussed to schools out of your community. So you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/in-the-80s-a-lot-of-kids-if-you-were-kind-of-bright-you-got-bussed-to/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [Jazz is like a telescope, and a lot of other music is like a microscope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/jazz-is-like-a-telescope-and-a-lot-of-other-music-is-like-a-microscope/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [At a certain point, when there's a barrier between you and what's right, eventually you have to decide you're not going to allow yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/at-a-certain-point-when-there-s-a-barrier-between-you-and-what-s/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [I started playing drums at three, then piano at five, then clarinet. But it wasn't till I picked up a saxophone aged 13 that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/i-started-playing-drums-at-three-then-piano-at-five-then-clarinet-but/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [You have to dig deep to make great music, and it gets harder and harder. It's a difficult, painful process to reach deep in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/you-have-to-dig-deep-to-make-great-music-and-it-gets-harder-and/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) > [Fela Kuti blew my mind. His playing is very unorthodox, but I learned how to appreciate that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/fela-kuti-blew-my-mind-his-playing-is-very-unorthodox-but-i-learned/) [Kamasi Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) [Explore all 104 Kamasi Washington quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/) ## More Band quotes > [The reason I was drawn to the Band Perry was because they have a knack for doing rollicking country music that can sound a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-robinson/the-reason-i-was-drawn-to-the-band-perry-was-because-they-have-a/) [Phoebe Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-robinson/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [There is something to be said though when you have 4 or 5 guys playing with no net, there is a sense of urgency,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-mendoza/there-is-something-to-be-said-though-when-you-have-4-or-5-guys/) [Marco Mendoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-mendoza/) > [My Nirvana experience was much different than the other three guys. For me, it was really new and exciting. I was just a guy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-smear/my-nirvana-experience-was-much-different-than-the-other-three-guys/) [Pat Smear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-smear/) > [I think my music has always been a mixture, depending on whom I'm working with - what band, what musicians, what producer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matisyahu/i-think-my-music-has-always-been-a-mixture-depending-on-whom-i-m/) [Matisyahu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matisyahu/) > [As you'll never hear the thing again, my boy, why not throw in a couple of brass bands?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-beecham/as-you-ll-never-hear-the-thing-again-my-boy-why-not-throw-in-a-couple/) [Thomas Beecham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-beecham/) > [I've always made sure that I tour with bands that people aren't expecting me to tour with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mayer-hawthorne/i-ve-always-made-sure-that-i-tour-with-bands-that-people-aren-t/) [Mayer Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mayer-hawthorne/) > [There is more to me than just having been in the Runaways. And even though I'm really, really proud of what the band accomplished,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-fuchs/there-is-more-to-me-than-just-having-been-in-the-runaways-and-even/) [Jackie Fuchs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-fuchs/) > [I like the bad-boy types. Generally the guy I'm attracted to is the guy in the club with all the tattoos and nail polish.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-fox/i-like-the-bad-boy-types-generally-the-guy-i-m-attracted-to-is-the/) [Megan Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-fox/) > [Bass guitar is the engine of the band.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzi-quatro/bass-guitar-is-the-engine-of-the-band/) [Suzi Quatro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzi-quatro/) > [I just became accustomed to being all the members of the band. That was something that was really exciting to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-collier/i-just-became-accustomed-to-being-all-the-members-of-the-band-that/) [Jacob Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-collier/) > [I guess because we're essentially a two-man band, we're attracting Wham's crowd. But Wham! are more of a businessman's band.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curt-smith/i-guess-because-we-re-essentially-a-two-man-band-we-re-attracting/) [Curt Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curt-smith/) > [I'm about as privileged as you can get. I'm a white, male, heterosexual front man of a rock band.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-reynolds/i-m-about-as-privileged-as-you-can-get-i-m-a-white-male-heterosexual/) [Dan Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-reynolds/) > [I'd been playing in bands for something like seven years at this point. And we were always trying to get ahead, trying to rehearse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aerosmith/i-d-been-playing-in-bands-for-something-like-seven-years-at-this/) [Aerosmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aerosmith/) > [Metallica's the only band i've ever been in. I'm not sure that when it ends in five, ten years, I'm going to put an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/metallica-s-the-only-band-i-ve-ever-been-in-i-m-not-sure-that-when-it/) [Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/) [Browse all 6,497 Band quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/band/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players. It was my introduction into funk. So I went and got a James Brown record. 'Black Caesar' is a film score, but it's so dope.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kamasi Washington" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-polyester-players-it-was-my/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Band" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-polyester-players-it-was-my/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/kamasi-washington-4976_band_i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-pol_2590933.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players. It was my introduction into funk. So I went and got…” — Kamasi Washington", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Kamasi Washington", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamasi-washington/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I started playing with this band,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-polyester-players-it-was-my/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamasi-washington/i-started-playing-with-this-band-the-polyester-players-it-was-my/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```