Michael Gutierrez-May Shines Light on History and Hope with “Light Still Shines The Same” and Songwriting Showcase
On Sunday, June 1, 2025, singer-songwriter and storyteller Michael Gutierrez-May will take the stage at the Hotel Vernon Shiproom in Worcester for a special ISSA Boston/Northeast Songwriting Showcase, joined by fellow artists Bernie Drury, Tim Maynard, and Peter L’Esperance. From 3 to 5 PM, audiences will hear songs rooted in the land, lived experience, and enduring truths. But for Gutierrez-May, this performance also shines a spotlight on his latest single and album centerpiece, “Light Still Shines The Same.”
Released in December 2024 as part of the album of the same name, “Light Still Shines The Same” is a lyrical and meditative reckoning with the legacy of colonization in North America. The song reflects on the European settlement of Indigenous lands and the generations of struggle that followed. Yet it doesn’t stop at despair — instead, it calls attention to resilience, unity, and the unchanging light of the Great Spirit that shines on all people.
“You build a town in the wilderness… / Took the wood from the trees / Water for the factories / And they attributed this to progress,” Gutierrez-May sings with quiet urgency. But the refrain offers hope: “The light still shines the same on everyone.”
The track was produced by Stephen B. Martin and recorded at Ultrasound Studios in Hanover, MA by engineer Joe Clapp. A key contributor to the song is guitarist Cliff Goodwin, best known for his work as music director for Joe Cocker. Goodwin’s expressive lead guitar anchors the track in both tradition and originality, a hallmark of the entire album.
Gutierrez-May’s music blends folk, indie rock, and subtle world music influences. The album includes collaborations with Carley Baer, Elizabeth Gray, and Sean Ryder, all of whom helped shape the musical and emotional landscape of the project. Additional musical guests include Raianne Richards, Pete Nelson, Suzanne McNeil, and bassist Elizabeth Gray, a punk-era veteran now part of the duo Box of Kittens.
Michael’s lyrics walk a line between the personal and political, weaving themes of loss, resilience, reconciliation, and even humor. “Destiny” tells the story of a young woman’s defiance in the face of social expectations, while “She Was My Angel” is a moving ballad about grief and long-term love. “Apology Song” and “Five Twenty Four” show Gutierrez-May’s ability to move seamlessly between reflection, contrition, and compassion.
The album was inspired by the loss of three close friends and mentors in 2023 — David Rumpler, Andy Holiner, and Eric “Snake” Gulliksen. “This album is dedicated to their memory,” Gutierrez-May shares. “Their encouragement made all the difference.”
Michael Gutierrez-May’s path to music has been anything but conventional. A longtime community-based psychotherapist by day and concert organizer by night, he is now known for his heartfelt songs, grounded in history and humanity. He has released three previous studio albums and performs throughout New England, often in support of community and benefit events.
The June 1 showcase is both a celebration of song and a reminder of what folk music does best: tell stories that matter.
As Gutierrez-May puts it,
“We stand on our connectedness, through the present time and through the ages.”
Hi Michael! Good to meet you! Care to introduce yourself to the readers for those not familiar with your music?
Hello to you also. I am a singer-songwriter currently living in the greater Worcester area, not far from Boston and Providence, RI, who has been involved with folk and acoustic music since the 1980s. At one point in the 1980s, I managed a folk music coffeehouse in Jamaica Plain, MA, for three years. I have written my own songs since I was 16 years old. I have three professionally recorded albums to date, the most recent completed in December 2024. I describe my music as a combination of folk, indie rock, and world music. I also work as a clinical social worker and therapist by day, and my tagline is social worker by vocation, writer and musician by avocation.
“Light Still Shines The Same” is such a powerful title. What inspired that phrase, and how did the song come to life?
Thank you for that compliment. My niece Ashley Mauzy has been the graphic designer for all three of my albums and for Light Still Shines The Same, I had her render a photograph of a lighthouse near Plymouth, MA in such a way that it looks like the lighthouse has been there for 400 years, since the time of the pilgrim settlement. My inspiration is my belief that we are all one people and common inhabitants of the same earth, and that the light does not shine more on one nationality or culture over others, sharing common ground.
This album grapples with the legacy of colonization but ends with a message of unity. How do you balance confronting historical truth with offering hope?
I think it is in the interest of all of us to live together and learn from each other. If there is only a White European culture dominating all others, it is a shallow and hollow way of existence, and we are so much richer when we have a multicultural and multilingual perspective on our world. I myself am Irish American on my mother’s side and Puerto Rican on my father’s side. I am a true believer in diversity, equity, and inclusion, and my hope is rooted in promoting greater understanding and tolerance.
You’ve said the album is dedicated to three friends and mentors you lost in 2023. How did their memory shape your songwriting and recording process?
David, Andy, and Eric really taught me to value a life dedicated to music. Each of them was passionate about performing and expressing themselves through their music. David played Brazilian samba and jazz piano, and he and I were roommates for a year in Jamaica Plain. His loss hit me hard. Andy was the leader of the Jamaica Plain music community in the 1980s and 1990s, and his performances and recordings embraced musical diversity. Eric, aka Snake, produced my first album and was a superb bass player, starting with the group Orpheus. He was a picky son of a gun, but he believed in me and my artistic talent.
You’ve described folk music as a way of standing on “our connectedness through the ages.” What does that connectedness mean to you right now, in 2025?
Despite the narrow-minded and at times prejudiced and hateful dialogue that has taken hold in the USA at this time, we as humans are a civilization that has endured and moved forward because, at our core, we need each other. This has brought us forward despite the terrible things that have happened and despite our self-destructive, mean-spiritedness. Being a therapist helps me see this more clearly. I am all about healing in my vocation and my musical avocation, and in order to heal, we need to be connected.
Connect with Michael Gutierrez-May:
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