One of the best arguments heard recently for Canadian folkie Bruce Cockburn is jazz guitarist and bandleader Michael Occhipinti's funky new take on one of Cockburn's hookiest tunes, Creation Dream.

Not only is his new True North Cockburn tribute easy to snuggle up to, it also makes a pretty compelling argument through stylish jazz fusion arrangements and improvised guitar playing for how good the Cockburn canon is.

Regardless of politics.

Seems a couple years back, Occhipinti, 34, was feeling musically stale and looking for a strong song he could fool with.

Being an old Cockburn fan, he began improvising on Wondering Where The Lions Are.

"My most creative writing happens when I'm bored," says Occhipinti, who opens Monday night for Tony Bennett at Confederation Park as part of the jass festival.

He ended up improvising on the song all afternoon.

"Jazz players used to improvise on pop-songs all the time before rock 'n' roll. We have our own Gershwins and Porters, but today's pop music puts so much emphasis on production rather than the song, it makes the good songs harder to find."

But the biggest hurdle facing Occhipinti was in capturing the essence of the music without Cockburn's passionate and righteous lyrics.

"I've always liked Cockburn for his outspoken lyrics, so you could see the dangers of turning him into elevator music if you're too reverential and do little more than take out the lyrics," he explains.

So he launched into improvising on The Police, a trial he found fruitful but not quite as satisfying as Cockburn. So Occhipinti and his band worked everything out at Toronto's RexHotel jazz nightclub last year before making the commitment to recording.

Brisk sales

"Bruce's manager Bernie Finkelstein saw the show and gave us his seal of approval."

The recording, which is selling briskly, has also given Occhipinti an even higher profile on the jazz and pop music scenes. Which is really cool for him because he's always had a broad view of himself as a musician.

"I grew up in a musical family, listening to Pete Townshend, Pat Metheny and Wes Montgomery," he reminisces. "I love pop musicians who create musical categories for themselves, like Joni Mitchell, Robbie Robertson and Bruce Cockburn.

"I've learned a lot from this album. It's the first recording that captures my playing and personality."

Occhipinti returns to the recording studio this September with his big band NOJO before he tackles his next cover project, a tribute to metal classics Led Zeppelin with his band, Rivethead.