The band was formed in the fall of 2000 by Michael Arlen Bont (banjo), Dave Bruzza (guitar), and Paul Hoffman (mandolin), who initially played together at an open mic night. As newcomers to the
bluegrass scene, the three drew upon an array of influences and varied musical backgrounds, reflected in their May 2004 release of
Less than Supper, recorded with bassist Chris Carr and dobro player Al Bates. Both Carr and Bates left the band shortly thereafter. Classical cellist Michael Devol had approached Greensky with an offer to assist in management, but ended up joining the group as bassist in the fall of 2004. The group explains their cohesion to being more of a brotherhood than a band. In the summer of 2006 the band were winners of the
Telluride Bluegrass Festival Band Competition, earning them a spot on the main stage of the 2007 festival. Soon thereafter they released their second studio album,
Tuesday Letter, produced by Tim Carbone of
Railroad Earth. They rounded out their line-up in 2007 when they added Dobroist Anders Beck. On September 23, 2016 Greensky Bluegrass released their album
Shouted, Written Down & Quoted produced by
Steve Berlin of
Los Lobos and Co-Produced/Engineered, Mixed and Mastered by Glenn Brown. The bulk of this album was recorded in Asheville, North Carolina in October, 2015. On January 21, 2022, they released the album
Stress Dreams, produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by Glenn Brown. == Collaborations ==