Elton John ‘Broke Down’ While Making New Album as He Reflected on His Mortality: ‘How Much Time Have I Got Left?’

Making a new album with Brandi Carlile was an emotional experience for Elton John.

In a new interview alongside Carlile on Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett’s SmartLess podcast, the 78-year-old “Rocket Man” singer spoke about the emotional process of making their upcoming album, Who Believes in Angels?

John got candid about making one particular song that thematically deals with aging, recalling the moment he received Bernie Taupin’s lyrics. “It’s called ‘When This Old World Is Done with Me.’ And so I’m writing the verse, like, ‘Oh, this is really pretty,’ and then I get to the chorus, and, of course, it’s about my death,” he said.

The EGOT holder continued, “When you get when you get to my age, which is near 100, you think, ‘How much time have I got left?’ And you’ve got children, you’ve got a wonderful husband — you just think about mortality.”

“And so, when I got to the chorus, I just broke down for 45 minutes, and it’s all on film,” said John.

Upon the announcement of the collaborative project last month, the “Bennie and the Jets” artist and Carlile, 43, released a trailer for Who Believes In Angels? Stories from the Edge Of Creation, a short film documenting the album-making process.

“I want everybody to see it, ‘cause it’s really human, like, deeply flawed and embarrassing. The kind of s— that you do when you forget there is a camera on is what’s really interesting,” said Carlile on SmartLess.

She witnessed the making of “When This Old World Is Done with Me” as well as the moment when John got emotional. “Because when we were making the record, I would sit behind him when he was writing his melodies and try to remember some of the ones that were really hitting me hard,” she recalled.

“I was recording him on the melody of this song because I thought, ‘Okay, well I want to remember this melody so that in case he moves on to another one, he can remember how good it was,'” added Carlile. “And he got to the end of that chorus, and his voice started to shake, and I thought, ‘Oh he’s going to really go.’”

Looking back on the recording session, John joked that Carlile “came over and she said, ‘Don’t worry. You’ve got at least another six months.’”

Elsewhere in the interview, the “Cold Heart” musician reflected on his career. “I’ve done so much in my life. And there’s so much more to do. And she’s inspired me to go ahead with this record, and I think this is the best record I’ve made in forty years. So, there you go,” he said.

Who Believes in Angels? is set for an April 4 release, while the short film will premiere the same day at 92NY in New York City.