Paul Anka doesn't write songs. He writes the theme music for famous singers.

It's a pretty impressive list that includes: It Won't Matter Anymore for Buddy Holly; Tom Jones' She's a Lady; My Way for Frank Sinatra; and the theme song for Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show.

But when it comes to his own hits, the former '50s teen idol's setlist is stuck in puberty. Despite selling more than 40 million records, the Ottawa-born Anka admits his teenage laments Diana and Lonely Boy sound pretty dated.

"It stretches credibility when a 67-year-old sings Puppy Love," Anka jokes flatly over the phone from Los Angeles. "There is no song that I censor because people want to hear them when I perform. But I wanted to show that I'm comfortable singing new songs, too."

So, in 2005, Anka released Rock Swings, an album of rock covers on which he reinterprets songs by Nirvana, Oasis, Bon Jovi and The Cure among others. The CD was the career shot in the arm he was looking for.

Not surprisingly, he's back with the same formula on his latest recording, Classic Songs, My Way, romantic covers of songs by such artists as Cyndi Lauper, Foreigner, Duran Duran and Joni Mitchell. Fans will get a taste of some of those songs when he play the National Arts Centre on Sunday.

"The most challenging thing about recordings like this is to get the critics past the first minute," he says. "The last time we did this, we intentionally picked songs that we could reinterpret with big, lush arrangements."

It's not the first time Anka's rejuvenated his career. In the 1970s, he scored his first major hit in 10 years with Do I Love You and later teamed with Odia Coates on a string of hits including Having My Baby.

This time, it was mentoring crooner Michael Buble's early career that made Anka hungry to record and perform for a young audience again.

"When I first heard Michael, not one label would touch him. So, I spent $500,000 and with arranger David Foster, together we spent a couple of months working with him, picking music that suited his vocal style. With someone as talented as Michael, all you can do is guide them to where they want to go.

"It was so exciting to be a part of that experience, I wanted to do the same for myself and find new material that suited me."

Even though he became a U.S. citizen in 1990, he's still a big part of the Canadian music scene. He received the Order of Canada in 2005 and last week was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters' Hall of Fame.

"I am flattered to be honoured by an event as young as this," he says. "It's been tough for Canadians to embrace their own, which is why so many of us went south of the border in the past. Fortunately, I feel that's way behind us now."

Tickets for Anka's show, at $64.50-$89.50, are available through the NAC box-office or through Ticketmaster.