PG Music Home Forums General Discussion User Showcase Paint Me A Picture

Ai vocal, my lyrics, my guitar, Biab real tracks. It’s become quite evident that there are many

folks pretty well dug in on the side of traditional music production. This seems to happen every

time there is a tech advance in this area. Biab on floppy disk, real tracks, Melodyne, auto tune,

have all been victims of this way of thinking. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I fully

respect that but caution that when it comes to the future it’s hard to go back. The vocal here is

not perfect. There are still a few spots that I had trouble with and finally surrendered and

moved on. These comments are not meant to offend anyone here on the best and most

friendly online community. Thanks in advance to all who listen and comment.


https://tommyadamsmusic.com/track/4210087/paint-me-a-picture

https://on.soundcloud.com/q1t9KCNJLNbSS5VHA




RealTracks in style: ~519:Bass, Electric, Pop HalfNotes Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~522:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~405:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~618:Fiddle, Background Allis Ev 120
RealTracks in song: ~~686:Organ, B3, Background Pop Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 2917:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm CountryFolk8thsMike Ev 085
RealTracks in song: 2911:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm CountryPopBrent12-key Ev 085
RealTracks in song: 2824:Pedal Steel, Soloist CountryEddy12-key Ev 085
RealDrums in Style: NashvilleEven8^1-a:Sidestick, HiHat , b:Snare, Ride
Royalty Free Loops
Recorded in Logic Pro X
Plug Ins : Nectar 3, Neutron 4, Ozone 10, Tonal Balance, Waves LinMB, Waves, L3-LL Multi Limiter, Logic Pro Metering, Waves Vocal Rider, Scuffam Amps S-Gear

Telecaster, Tom Adams






Paint Me A Picture


I used to have a memory that was like a steel trap

Now it’s a little bit rusty but it’s all I really have

I recall when times were easy and didn’t need so much thought

I’d sit and read then put down the book just to watch you draw


(Chorus)

Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be

Our little frame house in the shade Of a live oak tree

that weathered white fence that kept the world away

From you and me

Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be


(Verse)

Now and then I look back to a long forgotten dream

Maybe our lives were just as hard but that’s not the way it seems

now it’s nothing but a struggle and I always am amazed

Of that gentle comfort of better days


(Chorus)

Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be

Our little frame house in the shade Of a live oak tree

that weathered white fence that kept the world away

From you and me

Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be


(Bridge)

Life moves so fast what’s in the past simply fades away

It makes me sad that what we had is now our better days


(Chorus)

Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be

Our little frame house in the shade Of a live oak tree

that weathered white fence that kept the world away

From you and me

Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be

©2025 Thomas Adams

Tom,

This is such an excellent and touching song. I also think the AI vocal is top notch. Amazing stuff.

Love the tracks selections and outstanding mix.

EXCELLENT!

Bob

Tommy, gorgeous tune! Achingly heartfelt lyrics, and those vocals work great. Nicely arranged and mixed, too. BiaB has some gorgeous steel RTs, nice to hear one featured.

Am sure the AI music debate won't die anytime soon. FWIW, I really like the way you featured the BiaB instruments here. Hope our little software-that-could can stay ahead of the AI band tsunami...

I'm the designated non-expert on country music, so I feel more than entitled to say that this is a really good country song with a stellar production.

The vocals are also pretty good, but in some places, especially with the harmonies, there is some phasing going on.
Since you're a singer, I would try to find a way to instruct your AI NOT to create harmonies and sing them yourself.
It's always easier to add something later than to remove something that's already there.

Anyway, I really enjoyed my listen.
A lot!

Tom, an outstanding country song. I can hear Toby Keith singing this one.
The synth vocal is OK but I think a real singer would sound better - just my opinion and others may not agree with me.
Great lyrics and mix.

Hi Tom!
While I'm no country fan, this IS a well-crafted and likeable song. Besides the good chord progressions and harmony, the lyrics are a great example of how to use a metaphor to get the message across, and you milked that metaphor for all it was worth. Well done.

Re: AI, I don't know if you're a singer, but one of the benefits of technology is that it allows a person with ideas to be able to express them, whereas in years gone by, you'd have to hire a session muso to express that for you. To some extent, the AI vocal is the equivalent of me using the BIAB drummer because I can't play drums myself. This would allow those with ideas that would have previously remained silent to now share their creations with others. It reminds me of a quote from Henry Van Dyke: "The woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best."

While listening, I wondered 'What constitutes country music?' If you removed the steel guitar, and replaced the vocal with a British Liverpudlian accent, you'd have Gerry and the Pacemakers!

Tom,
Ace composition skills & guitar playing. Solid lyrics. Robo boy sings it well, but I am with Mario on real singer comment. Super mix and listens easy. Thank you for sharing.
Misha.

Excellent country song, lyrics and mix! The AI vocals are again so real sounding I doubt anyone would ever guess they were AI.

Excellent song, Tom, really well written and produced. AI vocal is good, fits the song well I think.

Bob, thank so much for your comments.Thanks Ron. I think Biab is safe for now.

Country music the way it's supposed to be.

The AI vocal is fairly good as long as it stays in the lower vocal range. When it reaches into the upper part of it's range is where it becomes obvious it's not real. That's where the artifacts show.

All in all, well done and totally impressive writing.

Hi Tommy,

Very nice song. Swings well even made my foot taps...!
The AI vocals are also very good. One thing you might want to fix in the AI; When the vocals go high (on some occasions) the AI did strange things (a bit).
But all in all I think it's a good, cool song. My wife probably wouldn't notice what I just wrote about the AI. She'd keep swinging...

Hans

Good song. Sounds like it has commercial potential. Great chorus. The singer sounds like a modern singer with all the effect and autotune they put on vocals.

Smmmoooth sounds, Tom. Love the lyrics and it's a great song idea, too. Your idea of perfection is different than mine. The vocal sounds perfect. But then even a crappy vocal couldn't destroy sucha a good write. Radio-ready pro production. Love the picture you paint with this one, Tom.

Thanks for the kind words and also for the solid advice. Getting rid of the harmonies is harder than it should be and I am working on it.Mario, thanks for your honest opinion. I always appreciate your comments.

Hi Tommy.
Ahh! A song with a good melody.
The AI sounds great apart from where it hits some high notes but not so noticeable if we weren't told it was AI.
Great stuff.

Vic

Very well done, and I love the guitars in the background.
Laurent

Tom,

This is pure, excellent country. That lyric is classic country at its best. It reminds me of something Dean Dillon might have written. Your AI vocalist reminded me a bit of Craig Morgan. His big hit was "Almost Home". I could listen to your music all day and all night and never get bored.

As for as the AI stuff, I think each creator should use the tools that best complement their work. The future is going to bring what it does. Whether someone likes it or not, it will offer the tools of the moment. I turned 78 last week, so I won't be around to see much of it. And I'm not so important that my words have an influential voice, so I go with what's available and hope for the best.

This is a classic song by a classy man.

Alan

Really lovely song that drew me and I'm not even a country buff. The ai vocals did bother me a bit but I understand your sentiments.

Andrew, thank you for stopping by. Somehow Ferry Across The Mersey doesn’t work for me as a country tune. But I guess our backgrounds tend to shape what we hear in songs because it’s all so cross pollinated. I enjoyed your quote. Keep creating, TomMisha, thanks for listening and commenting, Tom

Thanks for giving it a spin and commenting. I appreciate it.Thank you Dave for mentioning the writing. I’m glad that it’s not being overlooked due to the ongoing controversy regarding the Ai vocals. Stay well, Tom

With a less "country" voice, and of course stacked vocal harmonies, this could've been on Velvet Crush's Teenage Symphonies LP.
Tres Bon

Thanks Herb. I’m putting in the work to find some solutions to the problems.
Hans, thanks for listening and commenting. It turns out to be much harder than you might think to fix the problems with the vocals. I think Iam slowly making progress.

Thanks Vic. I’m working on the Ai stuff. Not there yet but inching closer.
Thanks for listening and taking the time to comment.

Alan, thanks for all those nice words.
Thanks for taking the time to listen and comment. I appreciate it.

Ray, thanks for stopping by. I’ll have to check out that LP.

Hey Tommy as a fellow AI vocal user I applaud this gorgeous use of the media...what people don't realize is that these are human voices that have been digitized and then manipulated either by human effort (ie Synthesizer V) or by the computers via AI (ie Suno) either way they sound better than I ever have as a "natural singer"...they have kept my musical journey alive ever since my singing voice abandoned me...this is a super country song...adding your real touch and personal talents to it made it even that much better!

PS...I think I recognize the singer.

Dan, thanks for the encouraging comments. All the best, Tom

You're on a serious roll, this is great stuff. Pro all the way. AI vox are here to stay, evidently.

Thanks. I appreciate it.

“Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be
Our little frame house in the shade Of a live oak tree
that weathered white fence that kept the world away
From you and me
Honey Can you paint me a picture of how we used to be”

Man, what a write. That would fit perfectly with any of the great “hat acts.” George Strait could’ve had a hit with it!
We can see that loving home and tree perfectly.

You seem to be learning fast on how to extract/manipulate these vocals and we enjoyed the phrasing of the singers.

Great group of session guys including you on the tele.

Enjoyed it!

J&B

Thanks! As you well know, it’s all about the song. Tom

Very cool country tune. That AI vocal is amazing. Cool lyric and backing band. Well done

Wow, great song first of all. Love the mix and instruments. I'm blown away at how well AI hit those high notes. Amazing where we are heading with technology. Just wow . .

Hi, Tom.

Solid country write, arrangement and performance.

It sounds like you did some hard tuning to get the singer to the notes you wanted, but he does a good job showing off the song.

Really enjoyed this song. Loved the lyrics.

Thank you!

Hi Tom
I missed this first time around.


IMO What's most remarkable is how well the AI vocal integrates into the overall sound. It's clear a lot of care went into the processing and mixing. While there's a certain ethereal, almost otherworldly quality to the voice, it's not distractingly artificial. In fact, the slightly synthetic texture actually enhances the dreamy and atmospheric nature of the song. It almost feels like a vocal sample manipulated with precision, creating a unique and interesting timbre. It has a very polished edge and feels very modern and clean. The AI does a great job of delivering the melody and emotion, creating a cohesive and compelling listening experience. It's a testament to how far AI vocal technology has come and a creative use of the tool that doesn't sound like the typical uncanny valley experience.

"The Way You Look At Me" is a beautifully crafted track that showcases a strong sense of atmosphere and a clever use of AI vocal technology. It's a dreamy synth-pop with a touch of melancholy. I like it.

cheers

Izzy

Thanks Scott. I appreciate it!

Thanks for taking the time to listen and comment.
Thanks David. I always look forward to your thoughtful comments.

Catherine , I really like that you mentioned the lyrics. Thank you for putting this in the hot topics section.

Izzy, I think you may be talking about a different song. Keep creating.

Stunning.

Good write.

fj

excellent.

Ai is gonna put us vocallists out of business...lol

scary good.

om

Thanks! Glad you made it back in time to hear it.

Thanks for taking the time to listen and comment. I think there will always be human vocalists. Some things just can’t be replaced by machines!

Hey Tommy,

A really good country song. I can understand that for a song like this you would need a voice that can "nail" this wide range and a melody line that only a studio pro could manage. It sounds really good!

Insofar as the debate between "real" and "synthetic" is concerned, I have a few thoughts.

In one sense I no longer pay much attention to the debate, whereas I used to. It just does not seem logical, since people should be able to do whatever they want, really.

I use to hang with some people who went on to become super famous back in the day, and let's say those people were "arteests" for lack of a better expression, and could be a little picky, or even a wee bit snotty. BUT, some of them did win some Grammys and stuff, and are household names now. However, there were rules. Unless you played through a Fender Tweed with no effects, and didn't use DX7s and wouldn't even dream of a gated snare and lived off of oat bran, you just weren't real and no one should take you seriously. (Kinda being silly here, but you get what I mean.)

My point is, if people saw us today using the gimmicks we use and even BIAB they would drop dead, right after saying How Dare You! Then they would have a heart attack and fall over. How Dare you!!!! It's not real!!!!!

If you take "purist" all the way to its logical conclusion, no one would ever be able to use the products sold on this platform or any other synth or AI tools of any kind. It would ALL be "fake." So where do you draw the line?

Unless you want to be as hypocritical as a Pharisee you just can't say, because then you would be the greatest and guiltiest sinner of all.

SO, I say do whatever you feel like doing.

God knows I do, and frequently have to throw myself on the mercy of the court for doing so.

Good song man.

SO, I say do whatever you feel like doing. Amen! Thanks for your input.