Elton John has enjoyed more than four decades of fame and acclaim -- yet he retains realistic expectations for his upcoming album The Diving Board. He tells RollingStone.com, "I'm not the sort of artist who'll get played on the radio." That didn't hold him back from putting a strong effort into his original material. Described as "returning to the piano/bass/drums arrangements of his earliest albums," Elton again teams with lyricist Bernie Taupin. At a listening party Friday in a small L.A. studio, he said the album has "got everything I love about American music: gospel, soul, country."

After recording most of it early last year, Elton and Bernie crafted several new songs in January to round out The Diving Board. Summing it up, he says, "It's the most adult record I can make at my age. I'm just heading toward being 80 years old and playing at the Holiday Inn."

More From KYBB-FM / B102.7