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Friends Band Together to Help Alejandro Escovedo

CD cover of 'Por Vida.'
CD cover of 'Por Vida.'

The revered singer-songwriter from Austin, Texas, was born to Mexican immigrants; his first punk band, the Nuns, opened the last show of the Sex Pistols. The True Believers, his next band, was a sort of Tex-Mex guitar army; he followed that up with a 15-plus-year solo career of chamber rock.

Escovedo is battling complications of Hepatitis C without health insurance. Some of his friends, fans and family -- including Pete Escovedo, Sheila E., Ian Hunter, John Cale, Billy Corgan and Ryan Adams -- have put together a tribute album, Por Vida. NPR's Felix Contreras reports.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Felix Contreras is co-creator and host of Alt.Latino, NPR's pioneering radio show and podcast celebrating Latin music and culture since 2010.