Elton John sat down for a chat with Charlie Puth and Ladbible talking about his brand new album Lockdown sessions, his career highlight, favourite collaborator, pair of sunglasses and his go to meal after a gig.

Charlie: Who were your favourite musical artists to listen to growing up?

Elton: Well I grew up in the late 40s and early 50s so there was no rock and roll and that time I was listening to k star, Johnny Ray, Guy Mitchell, Frankie Lane, Nat King Cole and then of course it all changed when I heard heartbreak hotel by Elvis Presley and then Little Richard and Jerry Lewis hammering out of the piano and that's when I decided I wanted to be like them. Things changed so radically when Elvis came along in the 50s socially as well as musically and then when The Beatles happened in the 60s they even revolutionised things more and musicians started to work with each other and you know music that musicians from different genres would experiment with eachother. It was a wonderful time

Charlie: I grew up listening to a hodgepodgeof things, The Carpenters, James Taylor and The Chronic by Dr Dre is the reason why I want to produce music, those drums.

Which one of your songs are you most proud of and why?

Elton: I'd say ‘your song’ because it was the first good song I wrote my first hit and then i've now got fed up with singing it and it's lasted so you look at the chart and your name is above people you've loved all your life and respected. I looked at Your Song, the Elton John record and it was above George Harrison and I kept looking at the board and go ‘this can't be right I'm up I grew up with The Beatles this can't be right’. I mean you never get over that

Charlie: I'd say see you again for me even though it's not technically my song but I wrote it and came from a place of heart.

Do you have a favourite pair of sunglasses?

Elton: Not really because I've got so many I can choose whatever mood I'm in. I'm you know I'm very lucky to have so much to choose from.

How many do you have?

Elton: Oh god i'm not sure I mean it's in the 1000s. It has to be yeah but i've been collecting them ever since 1970 when I started wearing the stars and all the crazy glasses I still have most of them.

What is your go to meal after a gig?

Elton: It's very hard to eat after gig because it's very bad to eat that late at night so I might have a handful of almonds and a glass of water which is really boring where i'd love to have a pizza

Charlie: Pizza after a show is incredible I like having I don't do it as much anymore and maybe one day I too will have some almonds with water, but I have this weird fascination with getting off the stage and just being by myself and having personal pan pizzas and like eating like a stack.

Who is someone you would like to collaborate with that you haven't already?

Elton: I’ve collaborated with most people. Sam Fender. He’s a british rock and roll artist whos the best rock and roll artist there is. He makes Oasis sound like a calm palm trio. He is brilliant.

Charlie: In the spirit of not always doing pop records and branching out into other fields I if Yo Yo Ma and I could write something for him and I don't even sing on the record and maybe I don't even play piano on the record but I get to construct a melody with Yo Yo Ma, that's chill inducing. I would love that.

Elton: I've done that.

To date is there any bit of your career that you would change?

Elton: Yeah I wouldn’t have taken as many drugs. Definitely not although I continued to work when I took drugs I didn't make my best work some of the time. I never really wanted to take drugs, I just joined in for the sake of it and it became an addiction. I became an addict and alcoholic and I've since you know learned my lesson but I would if I could go back to when I first saw a line of cocaine I would say no now.

Charlie: I can't say I have any regrets maybe I could have started earlier but i'm almost happy that I kind of started receiving like the amount of fame that I had like 24 years old I don't know if i'd be able to handle it earlier on

Who is your biggest inspiration?

Elton: My husband David without question, and my two children but David. Living with me it's not easy sometimes because artists can be very moody and they have self doubt and he's very good at talking things over with me, making me see some. So if I didn't have him I don't know where I would be.

Charlie: I wrote the lyrics to, ‘After All’ about their relationship because I remember speaking to David and he said the words that you probably don't even remember inadvertently, he said “after all that I knew that I was the perfect manager and perfect partner for Elton”

Sum up your career in one word

Elton: Unexpected. And the reason why I say that is because I am, I was four I was never really a singer in my band, The Blues ology and then when I started writing songs, nobody recorded them. So I was forced to sing the songs. And so I became a singer by accident, great thing about life, it throws things at you that you totally don't expect my career and the success of my career when it started in 1970 and exploded. I never for saw that coming whatsoever.

Charlie: I would say a synonym of that surprising. I too, was writing records that nobody wanted to cut while I was in college and and the first record that started off for me was “See You Again”. I was surprised that I was able to successfully put jazzish chord changes into pop music, but then I realised that you have been doing that all along. My bottom is getting sore from pinching it so much. I can't believe I get to hang with him.

Elton: It's not getting sore from me pinching it by the way.

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