Mulch, Sweat, and Shears at Disney Hollywood Studios
This weekend we bid farewell to one of the best hidden secrets in Hollywood Studios… Mulch, Sweat, and Shears. For 11 years they treated guests to great classic rock daily along the Streets of America. Within minutes you could easily find yourself playing an air guitar or on stage giving ‘more cow bell‘.
So as we say farewell lets take one look back…
The Shtick
just a humble landscaping crew
As you wandered the Streets of America taking corny photos and looking for hidden Mickey’s a landscape crew would come around. If you had never seen them before you wondered why Disney allowed a work truck to be in the park in the middle of the day.

this landscaping vehicle does not look normal (photo courtesy of allears.net)
You also took note that this truck was a little over the top with decorations.
Then the truck breaks down and the driver hops out, opens the hood and starts fixing the engine. Something just wasn’t right here.
The other workers hop off the truck to ‘take a break’. They begin creating a stage, unloading guitars, setting up a drum set… What is going on here!
Then they start singing and it will be some of the great rock of the ’80s and ’90s. You settle in to watch the 15 minutes show and catch music. Everything from the Rolling Stones to Journey. Happy to have stuck around.
Were you wondering about the ‘broken’ truck… this is a slick bit of Disney magic. The worker ‘fixing the engine’ was actually manning the sound board.
The Crew
a family with an odd and ever growing tree
The workers always referred to themselves as brothers. As time went on the brothers changed (but wore the same clothing as other member) and soon we even met a sister. They crew may have changed from time to time but the energy of the music remained the same.
The core family included:
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CC Dixion (Hedge Shears) – Bass, Vocals
Angelo Jannotti (Axe Mulch) – Guitar, Vocals
Luke Davids (Buzz Sweat) – Keyboard, Vocals
Matt Bloodwell (Sticks Mulch) – Drums, Vocals
Jim Doyle (Morris Mulch) – Vocals
At times some more distant family members would join in or were past members:
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Nicole Piro, Tony Manna, , Scott Smith, James Woodrich, Eric van Lugo, Jaime Barnes, Scott Distelhurst, Paul Smith
Audience Participation
you never knew you could dance
This jam session was not just for the band. They would take the time to include the audience in their gig.
Over the years I have seen audience members play the triangle, ring a cow bell and show off some dance moves. The cowbell is a standard and it is amazing how many people do not have rhythm. Myself included.
Some of the best moments were when kids were brought up for a guitar solo. It’s an air guitar but it sure makes a statement.
Part of the fun was seeing what they would do next.
Some Favorite Memories
jammin’ the air guitar
When Sam was around 13 we stopped to watch Mulch, Sweat, and Shears multiple times over our trip to Walt Disney World.
Sam was just discovering classic rock and would star rockin’ along with the music. He might head bang, sing along or even play the infamous air guitar.
On one occasion Axe, guitarist Paul Smith, saw him and came over to finish the set with him. Sam was tickled pink to be included in the show!!
getting up close and personal
On a solo trip I camped out to catch an set with Mulch, Sweat, and Shears. My goal was to get some good photos so I set up shop with my DSLR and was ready to go.
Sister, vocalist Nicole Piro, saw myself and a couple of others taking photos or shooting video. So she decided to have some fun and started playing to the lens.
Let’s just say I got to see a lot of her that day.
The Last Shows
live on Periscope
There is still time to catch one of the last shows in the park or on Periscope. There last day is tomorrow, October 10 and they will be Periscoping all of their sets.
Live on Periscope daily – the final shows https://www.periscope.tv/loslawnboys
11:30, 12:30, 1:30, 3:30, 4:30 daily till October 10th unless it is raining or the phone over heats from all that RAWK!
Goodbye For Now
hoping they will be reinvented
With the advent of Star Wars and Toy Story land and the removal of the Streets of America Mulch, Sweat, and Shears no longer fit with the theming of the park.
The good news is that the boys have been known to participate in other events. Like the Monstrous Summer
But I still have hope we will see them again. Maybe as the musical act in the Star Wars Cantina or along the waterways of Disney Springs.
I don’t think we have seen the last of them yet.
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Fun! We caught them on our first trip and loved them. It was a nice break to just stand have fun with them.
We saw them in May and had a blast listening to them… and watching them quickly pack up and head on their way. 🙂
I too was amazed at how quickly they left!
That looks like so much fun! I love your blog, am a new follower!
http://marleeindebt.blogspot.com/
They are one of my all time favorite memories! I git to play air guitar with them and we looked for them every year after.(I was jammin in my 60’s!)sure would like to see them again if they return. They were all just the nicest folks👍