TEMPERANCE SEVEN - Heart Hearted Hannah / Chili Bom Bom (Parlophone 4823) UK 1961 cs 45
vinyl: Mint- / company cover: Parlophone VG (One side has been painted / label: written on one side of label - punch-out center hole is missing.

The Temperance Seven were founded at Christmas 1955 in the Pasadena Cocoa Rooms, Balls Pond Road, North London. The three founder members were Paul McDowell (who originally played trombone), Philip Harrison (who originally played banjo) and Brian Innes. Gradually the band evolved into a nine-piece ensemble with a light-hearted and humorous performing style, although they were all serious musicians. The name "Temperance Seven" was suggested by Douggie Albert, of the Alberts fame. The Alberts were cult figures in the art scene in the mid 1950s and were forerunners to the sort of humour that became Monty Python. (This was not the band's only link with Monty Python; see below). The Temperance Seven was a subtle play on words — the number seven being "one under the eight". That there were nine members or "one over the eight" implied intemperance.

In 1961 the Temperance Seven achieved national fame with the #1 hit "You're Driving Me Crazy", arranged by Frank Skinner and produced by George Martin. It was quickly followed by "Pasadena", which reached #4 in the UK Singles Chart.^[1] They toured the UK widely that year, and their performances acquired a set routine beginning with the last few bars of "Pasadena", (which became their signature tune) and ending with the stirring strains of the "Gaumont-British News". By the summer of 1961 their fame was such that they appeared at the London Palladium.

Before the band became famous, Paul McDowell had also been a member of the Experimental Theatre Club revue, with Ian Davidson, Robin Grove-White and Doug Fisher. At the time, they had been performing their show, called "****"(Four Asterisks), at the Edinburgh Fringe, but after the runaway success of "You're Driving Me Crazy", McDowell had to quit the group to tour with his band. This prompted Davidson to look for a replacement, and he found Terry Jones, future Python member, who thus obtained his first chance to be part of the revue.

The Temperance Seven came to popularity during the resurgent trad-jazz era of the early 1960s. Their unique sound, coupled with their musicianship and ingeniously humorous compositions, set them apart from their contemporaries; however, they arrived at the cusp of that era and as popular tastes changed with the emergence of The Beatles, the Temperance Seven gradually slipped into obscurity although the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and Bob Kerr's Whoopee Band attempted to wear their mantle for several years whilst claiming no affiliation.