Detour started as the result of an enforced life detour for founder David “Dizzy” Holmes. Enroute from Midhurst to the National Scooter Rally, Skegness in ’84; Holmes hit a flooded section of motorway and smashed into a crash barrier. 18 months later he left the spinal injuries treatment centre at Odstock Hospital, Salisbury bound to a wheelchair.
An avid record collector before the accident he dove in deeper. Holmes placed an advert in Scootering Magazine to sell some unwanted vinyl and sold the majority and before long he’d a regular customer list. His mail order vinyl business was born.
In 1992, The Persuaders, from Margate, sent Holmes a demo tape and a few months later 300 copies of Finished Forever/In the Night [DR001] were released in January ’93 – Detour Records first release. They sold well, indicating a market for mod influenced music. That same year Detour released DR002 through to 009.
The second release [DR002] was the one and only single by Hartlepool’s Tin Soldiers, which was pressed by SRT.
DR003 was Lewisham based The Direction’s second single, the double A-sided Yesterday / The Kids Wanna New Direction, and their only release on Detour. Tania ? joined Detour Records and handled the business side of the label / mail order sales (not Holmes’ forte), while Holmes focused on the records.
Woking’s own Vox Pop recorded a number of tracks at Earth Terminal Music in June ’93 with Cor Blimey! and Pretty Impossible, both produced by Luke Baldry along with the band, making it onto 7″ vinyl as Detour Records’ double A-sided DR007. Pretty Impossible would go on to appear on The Farnborough Groove and the Japan only release of a various mod artist compilation titled Kickstart! (TFCK-87501) on the Flavour of Sound label in ’95. When Record Collector magazine published an article on Dizzy Holmes’ Detour Record label, they called out Vox Pop’s Cor Blimey! as indicating a direction away from the typical mod sound of the label.
In ’95, Philip Otto (bass), Trevor French, (vocals), Dom Strickland (organ), Bruce Brand (guitar) and Matthew Braim (drums), the five members of London based mod psych band, The Clique released The Self Preservation Society [DRLP003]. This was the band’s first and last studio album, after eight years as a unit. Engineered and produced by Liam Watson, part of it was used on The Big Breakfast. Selling over 5000 copies, with artwork by Dom Strickland, it is Detour’s best seller and saw The Clique showcase for the One Little Indian label. Mark Lamar would later have them do a Live in Session slot on Radio 1 on Mark Radcliffe’s evening show and he wrote the sleeve notes for the farewell single released on Detour in ’98.
In ’96, co-produced with Detour Records, Flavour of Sound released The Jam Tribute the Modern World compilation album – again in Japan only – which carried Vox Pop’s Running on the Spot. This was re-released (PREACH008CD) in the UK on the Rhythm Vicar label in 2001 with two additional tracks.
Today, Detour has morphed into several labels (Detour, Paisley Archive, Biff Bang Pow, Bin Liner, and Only Fit for The Bin) and the mail order catalogue is online only. It is also be worth mentioning that just about everything Detour has released is available to stream or download from your favorite digital service.
Holmes is still active in the music arena and with Tania also runs the Bulldog Rescue Trust.
Gallery:
Our Soundscene 