Tenor Placido Domingo sings poems by Pope John Paul

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Tenor Placido Domingo unveiled a new album of songs based on the poems of Pope John Paul II on Friday and said he was certain the late pontiff was a saintly man.

In "Infinite Love," a CD he presented at the Vatican, the Spanish-born Domingo sings duets with Josh Groban, Andrea Bocelli, Vanessa Williams and Katherine Jenkins as well as with his son, Placido Domingo Jr.

The songs in English, Spanish and Italian are based on poems the Polish pope wrote before his election in 1978.

"I am sure he will be a saint soon," Domingo, who met the late pope several times, told a news conference at the Vatican.

In May, 2005, Pope Benedict put John Paul on the fast track by dispensing with Church rules that normally impose a five-year waiting period after a candidate's death before the procedure that leads to sainthood can even start.

The first phase of the process for his beatification, the last step before sainthood, is now nearly complete. Church officials say they have found a miracle attributed to the intercession of the late pope with God.

The songs on the CD include titles such as "A Mother's Wonderment," "Palabras," (Words), and "Canto Del Sole Inesaurible" (Song of an Inexhaustible Sun).

They were translated from the original Polish and put to music by various composers. The CD includes music by the London Symphony Orchestra and was released by Deutsche Grammophon.