The 78-year-old pop legend - who is married to David Furnish and has Zachary, 14, and 11-year-old Elijah with him - teamed up with Brandi Carlile to write the track Never Too Late, which is about his relationship with with longtime collaborator Bernie Taupin, and noted that even though he "isn't sentimental at all" but has considered his mortality in recent times.
Speaking on CBS News Sunday Morning, he explained: "It's a song that's just as much about Bernie as it is about me. It's about both of us and how wonderful our love and friendship has been and our songwriting, what we've done and what we've achieved.
"I can't imagine my life without him in it. When you get to a certain age...I'm not sentimental at all but suddenly you think 'I don't ever...I want my boys to be in my life forever, I want David to be in my life.
"I want my friends.
"I don't want to die. Unfortunately, we do. Unless there's some sort of pill around the corner!"
The Crocodile Rock hitmaker - who has sold more than 300 million records since beginning his career in the late 1960s - insisted all his achievements in music don't mean anything when compared to his family life.
Speaking at a special Q+A event at the London Palladium, John said: "On my tombstone, I want nothing to do with Crocodile f****** Rock. I just want it to say: 'He was a great dad'."
The pop icon lost the vision in his right eye because of an infection and just weeks ago, according to The Sun newspaper's Bizarre column, it was revealed that he has had to "simplify" his usual signature for autographed editions of his new album Who Believes In Angels?
Now, John will sign his autograph simply as his initial of E, and will complete it with the letter X which represents a kiss.
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