James Kahn is going boldly where few men have ever gone before. After a successful career writing the novelizations of movies including Return of the Jedi , he branched out into television writing for shows including Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek:Voyager and William Shatner's TekWar.

For his latest project, Kahn is exploring stuff at the opposite end of the planet, releasing a collection of original sea shanties. Although the music sounds old timey, the lyrics address current problems including global warming, immigration, Covid, and whale endangerment.

“The whale is the water master of all she surveys,” Kahn proclaims on “No More A-Whalin,'”adding that “we never stopped to listen to the beauty of their tunes/we were too wrapped up in the romance of the sail and the harpoon.”

The mellow four part harmonies with fellow shipmates David West, Glen Phillips, and Wee Dougie Clegg on the title cut are as warm as a fireside gathering at an Irish pub. But the offering here is not meant to lull you into a false sense of ease. The song takes on the myriad crises threatening the world with a dire warning that all mankind's hopes and dreams are in danger of being washed away if all of us don't take action soon.

“In the Covid Times” recalls the year 2020 “when the fucking world ran out of luck, the hinges broke on the gates of hell, the year when Covid ran amuck.” Kahn manages to name check most of the hellacious events of the year on a stripped down presentation, harmonizing with West backed only by handclaps and ominous thumping of the bodhran.

In spite of the cataclysmic nature of the material, Kahn doesn't come across as a doom-spewing naysayer, but more like a prophet giving it to you straight up delivered in a package you can hum along with. But make no mistake- the former Emergency Medicine specialist who helped create the residency program in Emergency Medicine at UCLA is as serious as a heart attack, warning us fellow shipmates to quit floating around aimlessly and row cause this ship's a-sinkin'.