Greensky Bluegrass has collaborated with Holly Bowling on numerous occasions over the years. She appears on the band’s latest album 25 and joined them on their EP, The Iceland Sessions, among many other instances.
As the band’s Michael Arlen Bont told Relix in 2025, “She’s obviously a great player and plays with everybody. She’s that hired gun where if you want the best piano or organ player in your band, then you give her a call. She was always drawn to us because she loves our songwriting. She has a soft spot for songs that affect people. One of the things that makes her such a great fit for us is that even though she could play all of our parts at the same time, she’s also understated. She recognizes what her part should be in the music until it’s her time to go for it. Then she’s just amazing. We also get along personality wise. She’s just one of us—another misfit from Michigan.”
On July 26, the Michigan Misfits performed two sets together at the Flood City Music Festival in Johnstown, PA. The six musicians opened with an animated take on “Born Again,” which appears on The Iceland Sessions. Another earlier highlight was a run from Bob Dylan’s “When I Paint My Masterpiece” into “Lose My Way.” Then Jennifer Hartwick and Natalie Cressman appeared and added brass to “What You Need” and “Gumboots.” The second set featured a version of “Windshield” with all five members of Greensky joining Bowling on keys. The action later concluded with a sequence that began with “Distracted” (another song from The Iceland Sessions) that carried into the band’s classic “Don’t Lie,” then a cover of Steppenwolf’s “Born to be Wild” and back into “Don’t Lie.”
Greensky Bluegrass has just confirmed that Bowling will return to the stage with the band at Vail’s Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater on Friday, August 14.
Flood City Music Festival, July 26
Set One: Born Again, Solstice, When I Paint my Masterpiece > Lose My Way, What You Need*, Gumboots* Kerosene
Set Two: Leap Year, Windshield^, Take Cover > Monument, Demons, I'm Distracted > Don't Lie > Born to be Wild > Don't Lie
*Jennifer Hartwick, Trombone Natalie Cressman, Trumpet
^entire band on keys with Holly Bowling
