This is referring to the first 7 songs because,frankly I'm not even going to talk about the second 7! That said, this album is a wonderful demonstration of the sort of sublime music-making Sinatra could achieve (with the right collaborators and the right music ),and the sort of unmusical nothingness he all-too often slipped into at this late stage in his career. He teams up with Eumir Deodato, who puts out some wonderful arrangements matched only by the beautiful melodies he was arranging (the harmonic range he covers is breathtaking and only goes to highlight his later success as a producer for other big acts like Earth Wind and Fire,Kool and the gang,Robera Flack even Bjork!) Again, as with the wonderful Sinatra /Jobim collaboration a few years earlier Sinatra shows just what a gift he had for singing these gems and why it was even more criminal he was wasting away singing bilge like "You can drink the water and I will drink the wine" or singing about what he did "his way", no matter how awful the song! His vocals are waning badly at this time (and they never got any better) yet he still manages to find the control and the stamina to sing in an oh so hushed way that lends itself beautifully to these songs.Just listen to his phrasing,and then just try singing along with him! This was his last great effort and we should be thankful for it ('Someone to light up my life' has moved me virtually to tears too many times to remember such is the perfection of the song,his singing and Deodato's arrangement),as for the rest,well,'Close to you' is nicely done but buy this album for the first 7 songs alone.....I did!