Chicago. A city known for its blues…and its bluegrass. In the bluegrass his… Read Full Bio ↴Chicago. A city known for its blues…and its bluegrass. In the bluegrass history books, a pivotal stop, among others, along the road to success for the Monroe Brothers and, in more current times, noteworthy as home base for the long popular Special Consensus. And now, the Windy City serves as a critical intersection in the lives of four musicians, two who hail from Illinois and the others from as far and near as upstate New York and Wisconsin.

With a PBS series soundtrack already to its credit along with three full-length albums, The Henhouse Prowlers have been barnstorming on to the red hot bluegrass scene since 2004. In 2007, the group of roughly thirty-somethings made the commitment to go the distance, to be a full-time touring bluegrass band. But not just another bluegrass band.

2010 marked a turning point for the band. The Prowlers began to see their hard work and relentless tour schedule pay off with a strong momentum and growing reputation for crisp, hard-driving bluegrass with intricate harmonies and electrifying stage energy. While balancing time on the road and in the studio in Colorado, HHP competed in the Telluride Bluegrass Festival Band Competition and took top honors in the 2010 Rockygrass Band Competition. Look for them on the festival main stage in Lyons, CO in July 2011.

During this time, the band entered the studio with visionary producer and dobro player extraordinaire, Sally Van Meter, completing its third album. The product, thirteen-track “Verses, Chapters and Rhymes,” documents the musical strides the band has taken since its 2009 release, “A Dark Rumor,” which was assisted by Chicago stalwarts Greg Cahill and Don Stiernberg. No small thanks goes to Sally for her guidance and inspiration throughout the recording process!

Dedicated equally to tradition and innovation, The Henhouse Prowlers center their sound on that of the early, formative years of bluegrass, while they keep their pulse on today by covering contemporary topics in a largely original repertoire. The bluegrass and acoustic music scenes are exploding with a new generation of young, invigorated fans across the nation, and the Prowlers embody the new breed of performers adding to the style of Flatt and Scruggs with a dynamic exuberance appreciated by all. The boys wear the Bill Monroe mantle with spit and polish. They perform -- and conduct media interviews -- in suit-and-tie and work in a tightly choreographed, one-mic stage setting, which adds an exciting dimension to their shows. Combining passion, confidence and flair with instrumental and vocal prowess, The Prowlers deliver bluegrass with an edge.

The group’s prolific songwriting provides entree to twenty-first century topics not typically tackled by traditional bluegrass groups. Former guitarist Ben Benedict describes what they are trying to achieve: “None of us in this band lives in a ’Little Cabin Home on the Hill.’ Most of our audience doesn't either. But there is a broad spectrum of life that we can all relate to, so those are the themes we try to hit on and tell stories about in our original material.”

Original members Ben Wright, five-string banjo, and Jon Goldfine on upright bass, are joined by Eric Lambert on guitar and Grant Ziolkowski on mandolin. All four bring to the table diverse musical palettes, having pursued music in a variety of settings, ensembles, and genres prior to jelling as The Henhouse Prowlers.

Along the collective road they have traveled, The Henhouse Prowlers have absorbed such diverse influences as Broadway, blues and barbershop, church music and shape note singing, opera and oldtime, classical and country, folk and funk. James Weigel explains what drew him ultimately to focus on bluegrass: “Bluegrass seemed to be an amalgamation of all the things I’d ever listened to: blues, country, folk, harmony, great songwriting, and the energy and drive of rock and roll.”

Their eclectic musical backgrounds were the perfect fit when called upon by NBC Today Show features correspondent Mike Leonard to compose the soundtrack for his PBS documentary series. Based on the best-selling book, “The Ride Of Our Lives” follows Leonard’s family on a cross-country motor home trip with the backdrop of tradition-inspired music composed and performed (off-camera) by The Henhouse Prowlers.

The Henhouse Prowlers are adeptly positioning themselves for nothing less than success. Each member does double duty within the group, holding a business as well as musical post, making it a total collaborative effort. Currently on the road at least two-thirds of the year, The Henhouse Prowlers like to stress that they make fun a top priority. As Eric points out, “We're doing what we love, and we feel this directly translates into our audiences having a great time, too.”

Henhouse Prowlers Lyrics