Blues musicians play benefit concert in Jacó

In the wake of their action-packed performance at the International Blues Festival in San José this past August 21-22, four international musicians headed to the central Pacific beach town of Jacó, Puntarenas, to play a benefit concert at Club del Mar. The concert raised money for wheelchairs for local children.

“To me, if you don’t give something back, everything’s hollow,” said festival headliner Hurricane Hawk, who is based in Florida but has visited Costa Rica before. “I’ve been a lot of places in the world. Every time I come to Costa Rica, it’s just a beautiful experience. They have a wonderful way of life.”

For Hawk, who paid his own airfare to and from Costa Rica, the entire weekend was a chance to share the stage with some of his favorite collaborators – Tim Dunford, Steve Avery and Blind Pigs founder David Scott. When the quartet played at Club del Mar, they expected to play about two hours, but the concert lasted four, entertaining 100 hotel guests and local residents until late into the night. Hawk, who usually plays with his band The Invaders, had never performed at Club del Mar before.

“It was a great event,” said Philip Edwards, owner of Club del Mar. Edwards has run the hotel for the past 25 years, and he regularly hosts charitable events. “It’s a good way to make people aware of needs in the community,” he added.

The evening raised about $500 for specialized wheelchairs, which cost up to $5,000 each.

Hawk returned home this week to tend to his children and several small businesses, but he has plans to visit Costa Rica again in the near future. He was particularly taken with Amón Solar, the multipurpose eatery and arts venue in the capital city’s Barrio Amón that hosted last week’s two-night Blues Festival.

“That place just feels good,” he said. “I was lucky to have the most unbelievable musicians with me. They’re just the best, man.”