Elton John called the moment he took his first line of cocaine as one of the biggest regrets of his “unexpected” career.

As detailed in his 2019 biopic Rocketman, it took him years to escape from the addiction issues that followed, and he admitted it affected the quality of his musical output.

“I wouldn’t have taken as many drugs,” John told Ladbible TV when asked about regrets. “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 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.”

Asked to describe his career, he chose the word “unexpected." “I was never really a singer in my band, the Bluesology," he explained. "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 … started in 1970 and exploded. I never for saw that coming whatsoever.”

You can watch the interview below.

In a separate interview, based around his recent album Lockdown Sessions, John told NME that he was determined to complete his farewell tour before ending the performance element of his career. “At the moment, I finish supposedly in 2023, in the summer, by which time I’ll be 76 – and that’s it,” he said. “I can’t wait to do it and have a great time, and I can’t wait to finish and say, ‘No more – I’ve had enough.’”

He added that he "will do records, and I’ll do my radio show, but … I’ve had enough applause. I wanna be with my family. I wanna be with my boys. I’ll still be creative, but I don’t want to spend the rest of my life flying here, flying there. I can’t do any more than I’ve done now and save for the odd charity thing that may come up. That’s it for me.”

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