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Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel announced the death of his longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III, who died Tuesday at age 59, E! News<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n Escobedo served as the bandleader on \u201cJimmy Kimmel Live!\u201d since the late-night talk show\u2019s debut in 2003. Kimmel shared news of his longtime friend\u2019s death on Instagram<\/a>. He did not reveal a cause of death.<\/p>\n \u201cEarly this morning, we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III,\u201d Kimmel wrote. \u201cTo say that we are heartbroken is an understatement.\u201d<\/p>\n Kimmel, 57, described a friendship that extended beyond a professional relationship, as the two had been friends since 1977, the report said.<\/p>\n \u201cCleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old,\u201d Kimmel said. \u201cThe fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true.\u201d<\/p>\n Escobedo formed the band in 1995, playing the alto, tenor and soprano saxophones. Other members of the group include his father, Cleto Escobedo Sr., according to Entertainment Weekly<\/a>.<\/p>\n Outside of his regular gig on \u201cJimmy Kimmel Live!,\u201d Cleto and the Cletones toured with Paula Abdul, Marc Anthony and Earth, Wind & Fire\u2019s Philip Bailey.<\/p>\n Kimmel went on to ask for support for Escobedo\u2019s family. \u201cCherish your friends,\u201d he wrote, \u201cand please keep Cleto\u2019s wife, children and parents in your prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the original article on silive.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nMore feature stories on SILive<\/h2>\n