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I’ve had a great day visiting my parents in Northampton today, making the most of my relative closeness to them before I move to Middlesbrough later this year. Having not slept the other night, I overslept this morning, but I still arrived in good time. Lunchtime was a visit to a local Toby Carvery (which is rapidly becoming a regular haunt when in Northampton) where we had a good natter about all sorts of things, not least my new Salvation Army appointment. Late afternoon was a wonderful opportunity to sit with my 88 year old father and watch 6 Nations Rugby (England v Wales) on the television, my mother even prepared sandwiches and tea for us so we wouldn’t miss any of the match! My father has always been (and still is) a keen gardener, and the photo is of crocuses in the garden.

As I cycled across Leicester today, to attend a weekly meeting of the University of Leicester Chaplaincy, I was thinking about the gears on my mountain bike (21 by the way, but I generally only use the middle 7). The gears, of course, are known as derailleur gears, and that got me thinking about the title of the classic rock album by Cream.

The title of the album was taken from an inside joke. Eric Clapton had been thinking of buying a racing bicycle and was discussing it with Ginger Baker, when a roadie named Mick Turner commented, “it’s got them Disraeli Gears”, meaning to say “derailleur gears,” but instead alluding to 19th Century British Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli. The band thought this was hilarious, and decided that it should be the title of their next album. Had it not been for Mick’s turn of phrase, the album would simply have been entitled “Cream.” (Wikipedia)

Incidentally, the album contains the track Sunshine of Your Love which is largely responsible my interest in rock music after I heard it covered by a school rock band called “The Dark” in Northampton. With hindsight I should have bought the album they released, because I heard a few years ago it had become a collectable!