Elton John Breaks Down in Tears While Recording Emotional Song: 'How Much Time Have I Got Left?'

Elton John said he was so overcome with emotion recording a track for his new album that he wept for 45 minutes when confronted with the thought of his mortality.

The iconic artist, who recently celebrated her 78th birthday on March 25, opened up about the intimate moment while on the "Smartless" podcast.

The moment came to John when he was recording the song "When This Old World Is Done With Me"— written by his long-time collaborator Bernie Taupin.

Per The Mirror, the award-winning singer-songwriter said, "I wrote a song at the end of the album, and I just get the lyrics," he explained. "And then I get to the chorus, and of course, it's about my death. When you get to my age, you think, 'How much time have I got left?'"

The emotional scene has been filmed and showed in a documentary, "Elton John: Never Too Late."

The vulnerability he displayed was something he did not anticipate, especially given his long-standing experience in the industry. "You've got children, you've got a wonderful husband, and you just think about mortality. When I got to the chorus, I just broke down for 45 minutes."

Brandi Carlile Witnesses Elton's Raw Emotion

Brandi Carlile, who was in the recording studio with John, described the experience as profoundly moving.

"I want everybody to see it because it's really human—deeply flawed and embarrassing," she said. "The kind of stuff you do when you forget the camera is on is what's really interesting."

As he moved into a chorus, Carlile remembered noticing John's voice starting to quaver. "I thought, 'Oh, he's going. He's really going.' And then he just went into a real moment," she said, describing his deep connection to the song.

John has been open about his health struggles, from the loss of his sight due to an infectioń that rendered him blind in one eye, with only partial vision remaining in the other, to his ongoing battle with prostate cancer, which he announced in 2018. Yet, he continues to work on his art and calls his latest album his best in 40 years.

Tags

Elton John, Music