Flying Colors (band)

Flying Colors
Flying Colors, 2012
Background information
Genres	Rock, Progressive rock
Years active	2012–present
Labels	Mascot Label Group
Associated acts	Dream Theater, Dixie Dregs, Alpha Rev, Spock's Beard, Deep Purple, Transatlantic
Website	Flying Colors Website
Members	Casey McPherson – Rhythm guitar, vocals Neal Morse – Keyboards, vocals Steve Morse – Lead guitar Dave LaRue – Bass guitar Mike Portnoy – Drums, vocals

Flying Colors is an American supergroup composed of Mike Portnoy, Dave LaRue, Casey McPherson, Neal Morse and Steve Morse. The band's mission, chartered by executive producer Bill Evans, is to combine complex music with accessible songwriting. Flying Colors, on Mascot Label Group, has released two studio albums, and two live albums, to commercial success and critical acclaim.

In 2008, Evans wrote a proposal for a band that combined sophisticated music (complex composition and virtuoso performances) with accessible, mainstream songwriting. His idea was to channel the complexity through a charismatic pop singer/songwriter, keep the songs short, and use humor.

Evans approached Neal Morse (solo artist, Spock's Beard, Transatlantic), Dave LaRue (Dixie Dregs, Steve Morse Band, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai), Steve Morse (Steve Morse Band, Dixie Dregs, Deep Purple, Kansas), Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater, Transatlantic), and music producer Peter Collins (RUSH, Bon Jovi) about making the band a reality.

The singer/songwriter slot remained unfilled as Evans could not find a suitable candidate. He examined over 100 candidates. Mike Portnoy suggested Casey McPherson, who at the time was signed to Disney's Hollywood Records (Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Jesse McCartney) label. McPherson's band, Alpha Rev, had recently released New Morning, which spent 17 weeks in the Billboard Top-10 chart. Unlike most of the other artists on Hollywood Records, Casey wrote all his own material, and played multiple instruments on his albums. His songwriting, singing, and stage personae appealed to the band and Evans. Casey joined the still unnamed band a month before the first writing/recording session.