Joe Ownbey / submitted photoMichael Martin Murphey

For more than five decades Michael Martin Murphey has been a force in Western music, from his early days as a key player (alongside Willie Nelson and others) in the Texas outlaw scene, to hits such as “Wildfire,” “Carolina in the Pines” and “What She Wants.” His mix of gentlemanly country crooning, pop hooks and gritty Wild West tales have earned him multiple Country Music Association nominations, not to mention a Grammy nomination in 2009 for his “Buckaroo Blue Grass” album. Later this month, Murphey will drop the seventh album in his cowboy songs series, “High Stakes: Cowboy Songs VII.”

A lifelong rancher, Murphey is just as well known for his work in Western conservation and education through his Murphey Western Institute. To that end, his performance with his Rio Grande Band at the Tower Theatre on Sunday will help raise awareness of a growing threat in the West — Lyme disease.

The show is a benefit for Adel, Oregon journalist and consultant Andrea “Andy” Rieber, who has struggled with the disease for the last 14 years. Rieber’s work over the years has focused on telling the stories of Oregon ranchers, while promoting grazing and conservation on public lands.

Two more benefits to help pay for Rieber’s medical expenses are also slated in Oregon this month, including Lakeview tonight and Pendleton on Saturday night.

Michael Martin Murphey and the Rio Grande Band; 7 p.m. Sunday; $40, $45, $50; Tower Theatre, 835 NW Wall St., Bend; www.towertheatre.org or 541-317-0700. —Brian McElhiney