"Detour (There's A Muddy Road Ahead)" is a Western swing ballad written by Paul Westmoreland in 1945. The original version was by Jimmy Walker with Paul Westmoreland and His Pecos River Boys, issued around the beginning of November 1945. The title comes from the repetition of detour in the chorus: Detour, there's a muddy road ahead.Detour, paid no mind to what it said.Detour, all these bitter things I find.Should have read that detour sign. Written in the first person, the song tells of the singer's regrets for the choices made in life.