America is waking up to the catchiest promotional campaign of 2009, driven by the sharp sonic sensibilities of Stephen Arnold Music. CBS chose Stephen Arnold Music, the leaders in network music composition, to create the unforgettable new song “A Lot Happens Early” for their latest “The Early Show” national ad package.
Stephen Arnold Music built on its history of creating catchy hooks that build brands with “A Lot Happens Early”, a pop song that comes on like fresh brewed coffee. Stephen Arnold Music founder Stephen Arnold collaborated with hit songwriter Greg Barnhill, making music and lyrics that exactly matched CBS’ mission for “The Early Show” promos: communicate a strong and positive message that would draw viewers to the colorful “Early Show” on-air team.
“The song for this campaign needed to stick in your head, driving viewership by exciting people about the show and its personalities,” says Stephen Arnold. “Accomplishing that means putting the right song together with the right singer and a great group of musicians. That’s the art of making something that’s truly memorable.”
“A Lot Happens Early” springs out of the speakers with the energy that only a full live band can provide. Stephen Arnold Music assembled a group of top Nashville players, fronted by a contemporary female vocalist singing lyrics that deliver on the promise of each daybreak: “It’s a new morning for America’s family/Sun’s coming up so make it all that it can be/You know a lot happens early…”
“CBS wanted a sound with broad appeal bridging pop and urban elements, that could sound like it was a hit song straight off a top artist’s album,” Arnold explains. “We started with an incredibly strong hook written on a simple acoustic guitar. The lyrics we wrote reflected images that CBS could easily edit powerful images to, clearly showing the magic that happens in some way every day on ‘The Early Show.'”
Also on the Stephen Arnold Music team were Producer Chad Cook, Sound Recording Engineering Supervisor Paul West, and Editor Wheeler Sparks, who cut audio for the :60, :20, :15, :10 and :05 versions of the campaign. They collaborated closely with CBS’ Julie Haaland, Director of On-Air Promotions, and Dave McCoy, Vice President of Promotions.
“At Stephen Arnold Music, we’ve seen time and again that an authentic original song is crucial to a successful campaign,” Stephen Arnold says. “We made sure that ‘A Lot Happens Early’ would demonstrate the distinctive brand that CBS has on its hands. When viewers hear it, they know immediately that this song is the sound of ‘The Early Show.'”
About Stephen Arnold Music
As a multiple Emmy, Addy and Promax Gold award-winning music production company, Stephen Arnold Music has over 15 years of success in delivering the sounds that make a difference to networks, television stations, advertising agencies, film studios and video game companies the world over. The company’s Commanding Sonic Branding approach to music production and commitment to industry-leading service is at the core of its promise. For more information, please visit www.stephenarnoldmusic.com.
Web Resources
Click here to see the new CBS’ The Early Show promo with Stephen Arnold Music’s theme song: http://blog.stephenarnoldmusic.com/2009/08/31/alot-happens-early-on-cbs-the-early-show/
Click here for more info about Stephen Arnold Music: www.stephenarnoldmusic.com
Click here for more info about CBS’ The Early Show:
http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/earlyshow/main500202.shtml
