Biography
Javier Escovedo entered a musical household where his elder siblings Pete Escovedo and Coke Escovedo had already distinguished themselves as Latin jazz players who collaborated with Santana and established the group Azteca. Another brother, Alejandro Escovedo, cultivated a devoted audience through his wide-ranging work as a singer and songwriter, and niece Sheila Escovedo, later known as Sheila E., received guidance from Prince that steered her toward mainstream success. Within this lineage, Javier distinguished himself as the committed rock & roll figure, projecting a bold stage presence as guitarist and composer while performing in several prominent ensembles prior to beginning his solo recordings.
Raised in San Diego, California, he first grasped the guitar during childhood after his sister’s boyfriend demonstrated basic chords, quickly absorbing both garage-rock standards and classic Freddy Fender material. As the youngest child in an expansive family—his mother was already 40 and his father 55 at his birth—he exhibited an independent streak early and gravitated toward David Bowie and the New York Dolls just as punk began surfacing. Upon discovering that his high-school girlfriend’s brother shared an interest in the new style, Javier joined forces with Robert Lopez, later recognized as El Vez, the Mexican Elvis, to launch the Zeros in 1976 alongside bassist Hector Peñalosa and drummer Baba Chenelle. Their concise, forceful approach echoed the Ramones and the New York Dolls; as Javier once explained to a journalist, “I knew I would never play like Mick Ronson or Jeff Beck, but I thought I might be able to play like Johnny Thunders.” The quartet quickly earned recognition within the Los Angeles punk community as one of its youngest acts and the first whose members were all Latino. Through Bomp Records they issued the 1977 single “Wimp” b/w “Don’t Push Me Around,” followed in 1978 by “Beat Your Heart Out” b/w “Wild Weekend.” After building a substantial regional following and touring nationally, the band dissolved in 1980 without having completed an album.
In the early 1980s Javier moved to Austin, Texas, where Alejandro had settled after his own stint in the West Coast punk band the Nuns, and the brothers assembled the True Believers in 1982. The group’s three-guitar attack—Javier, Alejandro, and Jon Dee Graham—propelled a vigorous strain of roots rock that made the True Believers one of Austin’s most acclaimed outfits of the decade and positioned them for wider recognition until corporate changes at their label resulted in the termination of their contract and the cancellation of their second album two weeks before its scheduled release. Both the unreleased record and their self-titled debut finally appeared in 1994 as part of the compilation Hard Road.
Following the True Believers’ dissolution, Escovedo contributed to Will and the Kill and Sacred Hearts, collaborated with Ken Stringfellow of the Posies in the side project Chariot, and reunited the Zeros for concerts and fresh recordings. After nearly twenty-five years of embracing the rock & roll lifestyle, however, chronic substance issues prompted him to enter rehab in 2000 so he could prioritize his well-being. Beyond occasional appearances with the Zeros, he kept a modest public profile while performing solo sets from time to time; in 2012 he participated in a brief True Believers reunion. That same year he issued his debut solo album, City Lights, which showcased his enduring command of guitar, voice, and songcraft. In 2016 he followed with the compact, hard-rocking Kicked Out of Eden.
Raised in San Diego, California, he first grasped the guitar during childhood after his sister’s boyfriend demonstrated basic chords, quickly absorbing both garage-rock standards and classic Freddy Fender material. As the youngest child in an expansive family—his mother was already 40 and his father 55 at his birth—he exhibited an independent streak early and gravitated toward David Bowie and the New York Dolls just as punk began surfacing. Upon discovering that his high-school girlfriend’s brother shared an interest in the new style, Javier joined forces with Robert Lopez, later recognized as El Vez, the Mexican Elvis, to launch the Zeros in 1976 alongside bassist Hector Peñalosa and drummer Baba Chenelle. Their concise, forceful approach echoed the Ramones and the New York Dolls; as Javier once explained to a journalist, “I knew I would never play like Mick Ronson or Jeff Beck, but I thought I might be able to play like Johnny Thunders.” The quartet quickly earned recognition within the Los Angeles punk community as one of its youngest acts and the first whose members were all Latino. Through Bomp Records they issued the 1977 single “Wimp” b/w “Don’t Push Me Around,” followed in 1978 by “Beat Your Heart Out” b/w “Wild Weekend.” After building a substantial regional following and touring nationally, the band dissolved in 1980 without having completed an album.
In the early 1980s Javier moved to Austin, Texas, where Alejandro had settled after his own stint in the West Coast punk band the Nuns, and the brothers assembled the True Believers in 1982. The group’s three-guitar attack—Javier, Alejandro, and Jon Dee Graham—propelled a vigorous strain of roots rock that made the True Believers one of Austin’s most acclaimed outfits of the decade and positioned them for wider recognition until corporate changes at their label resulted in the termination of their contract and the cancellation of their second album two weeks before its scheduled release. Both the unreleased record and their self-titled debut finally appeared in 1994 as part of the compilation Hard Road.
Following the True Believers’ dissolution, Escovedo contributed to Will and the Kill and Sacred Hearts, collaborated with Ken Stringfellow of the Posies in the side project Chariot, and reunited the Zeros for concerts and fresh recordings. After nearly twenty-five years of embracing the rock & roll lifestyle, however, chronic substance issues prompted him to enter rehab in 2000 so he could prioritize his well-being. Beyond occasional appearances with the Zeros, he kept a modest public profile while performing solo sets from time to time; in 2012 he participated in a brief True Believers reunion. That same year he issued his debut solo album, City Lights, which showcased his enduring command of guitar, voice, and songcraft. In 2016 he followed with the compact, hard-rocking Kicked Out of Eden.
Albums
