GregB

No one has asked and it doesn't really matter what I think, but anyway ... The Beatles were my biggest of all musical influences. I can actually remember being transfixed hearing “Love Me Do” for the first time on my transistor radio just a couple of months shy of my 12th birthday. It unlocked something in me, bringing colour into a drab world and giving me and my generation a new focus. They dominated my complete high-school phase from Please Please Me (1963) to Let It Be (1970). They were the reason I started playing guitar at age 13. And now ... “Now and Then”. The verses are brilliant melodically and lyrically. Simple, plaintive, but beautiful and inventive. The choruses are unfortunately mediocre due to trite melody/lyrics, a confused arrangement and some muddy mixing. Ringo’s voice doesn’t help, but who could deny him this unique moment. Paul’s slide guitar, despite good intentions, doesn’t come close to George’s technical ability, musicality and unique tone. Giles Martin’s string arrangements are NOT as good as his Dad’s. But, hey, compared to much of recent music, it is a masterpiece. Fortunately they avoided repeating Jeff Lynne’s ‘ELO effect’ so evident on “Free As A Bird” (which I regard as a much stronger song). What really pushes “Now and Then” into greatness, in my opinion, is the innovative video which complements the music. It presses every conceivable button of emotional nostalgia for the great times we’ve had with the four Beatles. While the “Free..” video contained many, many easter egg visuals from past songs, “Now..” instead concentrates solely on the men themselves, cleverly melding them ‘now’ and ‘then’. The final shots, of them receding into history, and a final bow on stage, mirrors the "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves and I hope we've passed the audition" from John at the end of the rooftop performance in the “Let It Be” and “Get Back” films. It may be age, but I am hard-pressed not to get misty-eyed and my throat tighten each time I watch and listen to this, their latest and last production. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Opxhh9Oh3rg Cheers, Greg

Hi. Don't know if it's an age thing, or it's becuase I've always LOVED her music, but the ideas expressed in this article really vibed with me. To save you the onward link and masses of adverts there, the text is lifted direct from https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-conversation-that-made-joni-mitchell-quit-music/ ... any text colouring is mine. Greg The conversation that made Joni Mitchell quit music Elle Palmer FRI 13TH OCT 2023 17.30 BST Joni Mitchell has had a lengthy love affair with music. She spent the late 1960s and the majority of the 1970s occupying the folk circuit, pairing vulnerable lyrics with soft strummed soundscapes. By the end of the decade, she had pivoted to the world of jazz, collaborating with the likes of Charles Mingus and Herbie Hancock. She even tried her hand at electronic music. But with the new century’s dawn, Mitchell’s disdain for the industry surrounding her began to overpower her love for songwriting. As the music business began to prioritise aesthetics over sound and commerciality over art, the folk legend took her leave and announced that her 2002 record, Travelogue, would be her last. Mitchell’s decision to quit was a result of the superficiality of the modern music industry, which was once distilled down to her in a conversation with an executive. In the album notes for her Artist’s Choice – Music That Matters to Her compilation, the ‘Big Yellow Taxi’ singer stated, “By the end of the 20th century, it seemed to me that the muse had gone out of music and all that was left was the ‘ic’.” For labels and music industry professionals, artists who prioritised creativity and innovation had taken a backseat to those who were commercially viable and easier to control. As a result, Mitchell suggested: Nothing sounded genuine or original. Truth and beauty were passé. Shock was the reigning value and schlock was rating raves in "Rolling Stone". Mitchell even recalls hearing a record label boss on the radio openly announcing, “We are no longer looking for talent. We’re looking for a ‘look’ and a willingness to cooperate!” The situation seemed increasingly dire, but one conversation with an executive seemed to put the final nail in the coffin for Mitchell. As a “prelude” to rejecting her, then, last album, an executive told Mitchell, “We’re selling cars now. We’ve got fast cars and cute cars…” This insulting comparison seems to sum up everything Mitchell disliked about the industry. As a result, she quit music: “I got the picture. I quit the business.” The changing workings of the industry had pushed out one of its most important and influential figures. For five years following the release of Travelogue, Mitchell stayed true to her word and did not put out a new album. It was only in 2007, with the release of Shine, that she returned to music. Over 15 years later, it remains her final full-length studio offering.

When neither the actor or photographer play guitar ...

The very new and free Dall-E 3 has been highly praised for it's ability to create words within images. Prior to this, Dall-E - and also others like MidJourney - could only display gooble-de-gook scribbles. My prompt was: photo of a pretty blond woman in her twenties wearing a white t-shirt which says "The Flat White Album" written in large black capital letters. The resulting lettering IS remarkably good and it follows contours of both the body AND the cloth folds, but not one of the three logos presented was spelled correctly!! No doubt this will be fixed within weeks ... and then MidJourney will likely frog leap Dall-E with many new features. Progress in AI image generation is absolutely astounding.

The very new and free Dall-E 3 has been highly praised for it's ability to create words within images. Prior to this, Dall-E - and also others like MidJourney - could only display gooble-de-gook scribbles. My prompt was: photo of a pretty blond woman in her twenties wearing a white t-shirt which says "The Flat White Album" written in large black capital letters. The resulting lettering IS remarkably good and it follows contours of both the body AND the cloth folds, but not one of the three logos presented was spelled correctly!! No doubt this will be fixed within weeks ... and then MidJourney will likely frog leap Dall-E with many new features. Progress in AI image generation is absolutely astounding.

Hi Ronja Great to have you join the Music Video Club and look forward to some interaction (and examples?) there. Greg 👍

I think the main thing here is that we are now finally on the road to AI video. It's still early days and everything I've seen so far (Sep '2023) LOOKS experimental or proof of concept, cartoony, ill-defined edges, and very SHORT clips. But considering the steep J-curve improvements seen in the last 12 months with image generation, video (and music) are perhaps just 6-months away from stunning 'can't tell the difference from real footage' results, along with consistent characterisation.

... though personally I'm not a fan of arbitrary images which have no relationship to the song's story.

G'day and Welcome! There's a small number from Oz here. Greg (Gold Coast)

My latest (and likely my last) music video. It had to wait almost 3 years after the track's release in 2020 before the very recent advances in AI allowed me to generate the images I had had in my head when creating the song. In the past I've used a lot of stock video, largely from https://artgrid.io/. The main benefits have been: high quality - framing, content, colour, resolution multiple 'story' clips - allowing for consistency of character/location videos clips, provided they are relevant, can fill a LOT of time in a music video!! price (unlimited downloads and total freedom of usage) HOWEVER, if given the choice, I much PREFER to use still images. I think photography is far more impactful and the eye is free to examine and absorb an unchanging image. This remains so even with a slow steady zoom/pan of an image. And recent AI can produce exquisite stills of tremendous surprise, beauty, detail and 'imagination'. It'd be nice to delve deeper into the issue of stills vs film if anyone wishes to contribute their thoughts. Greg

Wowsers! Seemed pretty simple ... close-up of a kind smiling face , realistic --style raw --ar 16:9 BUT ... (spot the mistake!)

Hi. I've just posted a new music video in "Showcase" with more use of AI imagery. All the images of the guy were AI. E.g. <link to previously generate image of a guy> a handsome man in his 30s lost in thought, soft crumpled white shirt with collar, realistic, writing a letter, moody lighting [though these are square because I forgot to use "--ar 16:9" for normal landscape video!! It was early days for me ]

What I had was not bad ... column of 15th century knights on horseback on open country dirt road viewed from the rear, photo realistic, --no crosses spears --ar 16:9 --style raw A small tweak was intended using this VARIATION ... close up of long loose column of 15th century medieval knights on horseback galloping away on country dirt road in open countryside, flowing horses tails, viewed from the rear, photo, realistic, --no spears --style raw --ar 16:9 Great for Bollywood, but nowhere near what I wanted ... or expected!!

TWO recent examples ... a) medieval longbow archer, photo, realistic, --ar 16:9 THese are just 4 out of probably 36 ... I've been unable to get ANY completely logical archery images. b) using ‘Vary Region’ to replace perfectly presented medieval knights on horseback with ‘longbowmen archers and men-at-arms’ ... ... WTF?! I was literally stunned and slack-jawed for several seconds when this appeared.

Thanks for the heads-up ... I had assumed the lack of a linked thumbnail was just processing lag. Tried to fix now ... the thumbnail appeared but has now gone, leaving the relevant amount of space!! Tried again ... SEEMS to be OK this time.

It is with great relief that I have finally made and released a video to accompany “Agincourt” from “The Flat White Album”, my 30-track opus. It is my longest ‘music video’ to date (11:33) and is almost 3 years ‘late’ due to lack of available imagery, but the very recent change of affairs is explained in the description below the video. It uses 150 AI-generated images (approx 99% of the running time content!).

Great idea. Make it for all AI (not just images). 😀

Hi. I've just posted this elsewhere (I had forgotten about this Club ... which I started!). But I'll post the videos HERE very soon, along with some details about how I created them. E.g. issues, actual prompts, transferring the images from the web app to my local machine, and two installable apps that are free and quick to batch-convert PNG to JPG as well as batch upscale x4. Greg

The AI journey continues. "Hard To Say I'm Sorry". I've finished the video (which mixes stock video with AI-generated still images) and I'm just waiting on the track to be finished (hopefully approx 1 week) ... I'll post about the video then. "Agincourt". One of two tracks so far without a video from my 30-track album "The Flat White Album", purely due to lack of variety/quality of relevant medieval imagery times (Agincourt was c.1415). However, having cut my teeth in Midjourney 5.2 with "Hard ..." video, I now felt more confident. I ended up with 150 images that more-or-less fitted the 'film' I had always had in my mind, and the 11:33 video is now completed, bar a few tweaks. Although, believe me, my confidence was often shattered by the idiot-savant nature of AI. For example, archery/longbows appear to be a blind spot (so I gave up on such prompts), while there were other occasions when the AI seems to have actually gone mad ... a) medieval longbow archer, photo, realistic, --ar 16:9 b) using ‘Vary Region’ to replace perfectly presented medieval knights on horseback with ‘longbowmen archers and men-at-arms’ ... ... WTF?! I was literally stunned and slack-jawed for several seconds when this appeared. Greg

My “Hard To Say I’m Sorry” cover is 99% complete ... a classic ballad but with my own music/lyrics forming the first third. I’m now turning my mind to its music video but am finding that my usually reliable pool of visual ideas seems to have been concreted over! So then I thought, "I wonder if the ChatGPT AI could have even an inkling of what I’m after"? Well, Lo and Behold, it has given me some solid ideas. Not only free, but done in seconds. No doubt, in a few more months, AI could even generate the video itself! But would I have too much creative pride to use it??? ... now THAT is a troubling question, Grasshopper. ME: Describe some scenes that could be made with stock footage/stills that could make a music video for the song "Hard to say I'm sorry". ChatGPT "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" is a classic song by the band Chicago, known for its emotional and reflective lyrics. To create a music video that complements the song's themes of love, regret, and vulnerability, here are some scenes that could be made using stock footage/stills: Romantic Montage: Show a series of stock footage clips portraying happy couples in various stages of their relationships: holding hands, sharing intimate moments, laughing together, and walking in scenic locations. Broken Promises: Use imagery of shattered glass or broken objects to symbolize the broken promises and mistakes that have led to the need to apologize. Distant Memories: Show old photographs or faded film reels capturing moments of joy and togetherness, highlighting the nostalgia and yearning to go back to a happier time. Longing Glances: Use close-up shots of individuals looking contemplative, lost in thought, or staring out of windows, conveying the idea of yearning and the difficulty in expressing regret. Symbolic Gestures: Show hands reaching out towards each other but just missing, symbolizing the longing for reconciliation and the difficulty in bridging the emotional gap. Changing Seasons: Create a visual metaphor by showing the changing of seasons from winter to spring, symbolizing the hope for renewal and healing in a strained relationship. Lonely Walks: Depict a person walking alone in an empty park or on a desolate street, highlighting the isolation and sadness that can come with relationship troubles. Writing Letters: Capture scenes of someone writing letters, crumpling them up, and starting over, reflecting the struggle to find the right words to express regret. Rainy Moments: Utilize footage of raindrops falling on windows or umbrellas, symbolizing tears and emotional turmoil. Reconciliation: Conclude the video with shots of two people slowly walking towards each other, eventually embracing and reconciling, capturing the essence of the song's message of healing and forgiveness. Musical Performance: Intersperse the narrative scenes with shots of the band performing the song, adding a sense of authenticity and emotion to the video. Close-up Expressions: Focus on close-up shots of individuals' facial expressions, capturing the complexity of emotions ranging from sorrow and regret to hope and determination. Home Footage: Incorporate snippets of home videos or handheld camera footage, creating an intimate and personal touch that emphasizes the genuine emotions of the song. Remember that the key to a successful music video is to create a visual narrative that resonates with the song's lyrics and emotions. The scenes should enhance the viewer's connection to the music and amplify the themes being expressed. 2 / 2 "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" by Chicago is a heartfelt ballad that deals with themes of regret, reconciliation, and the difficulty of admitting one's mistakes. To create a music video that complements the emotional depth of the song, you could consider incorporating the following scenes using stock footage and still images: Flashback Memories: Open the video with sepia-toned or slightly desaturated images that represent memories of happier times between a couple. Show scenes of them laughing, enjoying outings, and sharing intimate moments. Breaking Apart: Transition to more muted and darker tones as the relationship begins to experience tension. Use shots of the couple arguing, walking away from each other, or looking distant and sad. Lonely Interiors: Show empty interiors of their shared spaces, emphasizing the void left after a breakup. Shots of an untouched table for two, an empty chair, and a half-empty bed can effectively convey the loneliness. Messages and Letters: Incorporate shots of handwritten letters, texts, or emails. Show close-ups of words like "I'm sorry" and "miss you" as a representation of the characters' attempts at communication. Symbolic Objects: Utilize objects that hold sentimental value in the relationship, such as a piece of jewelry, a stuffed animal, or a photo frame. These items can be featured prominently to evoke emotions of nostalgia and loss. Reflections and Regret: Use scenes of raindrops on windows or mirrors to symbolize tears and introspection. Show the characters looking at their reflections, conveying a sense of regret and self-evaluation. Changing Seasons: Incorporate footage of changing seasons to mirror the emotional journey. Use spring blossoms and summer sunsets for the happier memories, and transition to autumn leaves and winter snowfall to reflect the cooling emotions. Strangers in Crowds: Intersperse shots of the characters in busy public spaces, surrounded by strangers. This can emphasize the feeling of isolation even in a crowd and highlight the absence of the person who was once so close. Attempts to Reconnect: Show shots of the characters attempting to move on while still clearly longing for each other. They might pass by places they used to visit together, or be shown separately visiting a place of shared significance. Reconciliation and Forgiveness: The climax of the video could feature scenes of the characters finding their way back to each other. Use shots of them hesitating, sharing a heartfelt conversation, or finally embracing as the chorus reaches its emotional peak. Moving Forward: Conclude the video with images of the couple rebuilding their connection. Walking hand in hand, sharing smiles, and creating new memories together can signify hope and healing. Fade to Black and White: As the song draws to a close, fade the visuals to black and white, and use a still image of the couple holding each other closely, symbolizing their rekindled love and commitment. The key to a successful music video for "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" is to capture the emotional journey of the song's narrative using carefully curated stock footage and still images that resonate with the lyrics and mood of the music.

You can only compare your stuff to the songs you've heard and therefore take appropriate care NOT to have copied anything. It's simply impossible to know the millions of tunes/lyrics out there ... so don't worry about it. Remember that Paul McCartney was worried sick that he'd stolen "Yesterday", which came to him in a dream. FInally, unless you're a million-seller (i.e. you've made some serious dosh) why would anyone bother coming after you? Greg PS. If it's a simple song, these guys have already computer-generated every permutation of notes and note rhythms and store them on a disk (all that is required to 'prove' copyright). They did so to help anyone who is sued for plagiarism. Article: https://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2020/02/every-possible-melody-has-been-copyrighted-stored-on-a-single-hard-drive.html TED-X talk:

Music seems a ludicrously facile expression of the terrible Ukrainian situation, but I was struck that humanity keeps repeating the micro and macro failures of the past. We all thought Russia's aggression in Europe post-WWII had finally run its course after the fall of the Berlin Wall, that there was a blossoming of peace, and a real feeling of optimism was spreading everywhere. Now, Russia has resumed its old ways. China too has increased its belligerence. (North Korea goes without saying!) The music release itself was posted and discussed in "Showcase" (Oct 16, 2022) https://forums.songstuff.com/topic/57145-running-from-red-extended-mix/. Only now, four months later, and feeling a little edgy due to not having any other creative projects simmering, I decided to have a crack at the music video for the track. As mentioned elsewhere, I've always found difficulty in find enough quality/relevant imagery from my handful of limited cleared-to-publish sources to tell any visual story that I imagine. Now I had to find roughly double the quantity for a track which is 8:20 long! However, I learned long ago to accept 'make-do' with what I have. The final visuals are good enough. A few are compelling/emotional. There is no attempt in the story to be self-righteous and preachy. The 'Red' here can also be equally applied to the flags of the USA and its 'running dog' allies, including the UK (my birth) and Australia (my home) who, with only immediate political expediency in mind, have shown they will invade, bomb (indiscriminately killing civilians), bully and coerce governments, and assassinate individuals in other countries, all in the pursuit of power, influence, resources, etc. ... usually under the supposed guise of 'self-defence'. Isn't that exactly the same as what both Russia and China do? If you have any questions about sources, editing, etc., I enjoy discussing the technology and decision making. PS. The original video (which I actually prefer) is below and in which I created a video prologue to give it historical context, i.e. the sounds were NOT part of the original album release. I decided to change its YouTube status to UNLISTED (only those with the link can find and see it) as, back in 2015, I could not be 100% certain that everything was cleared for use. This problem made me become really anal regarding my future documentation of sources, creators, and usage rights. Cheers, Greg

"Synthetic plastisoid notes symbiotically, life’s existence in digital chronology" Who said AI lyrics weren't original? Or were you just putting a Hex on me?

Seems so. See ...