The Ned Wood Archive

But you know life is for learning

Brandi Carlile, Pyramid Stage, June 2025

Joe

Joe’s conflicted.  He’s had Colin Bluntsone in one ear and Wreckless Eric in the other.  Wreckless is saying that there’s only one girl in the world for him and that he should go the whole wide world just to find her.  Bluntsone is telling him not to bother tryin’ to find her cos she’s not there.  Well, she has to be someplace.  He didn’t just dream it.  Did he?  

He’s drifting around various stages, hoping to get some answers.  First he wanted angry.  Like Lambrini Girls angry.  Panic Shack were at Woodsies, so that was fine.  They were what he needed.  But then someone in the Reach was playing the Chi-Lites and that set him off again.  Tell me have you seen her?  

When they were down in the markets, the two of them, Ellie had tried some good stuff on. Classy stuff.  He’d told her that it looked good on her, which was true, but she’d seemed diffident.  Like she didn’t really like all that fancy colourful stuff.  Joe had asked himself why, but, thinking it over now, he realises that she doesn’t really need to dress up.  Her face is enough.  You don’t look at the floor when you visit the Louvre.

Maybe she’s too good for him. Maybe his wallet going missing and her phone number getting lost and him not being able to meet up with her as they’d planned, maybe all of that was the fates trying to tell him something.  That with her going away next week it wasn’t going to work out.  If they met up they’d just spend the rest of the weekend worrying about the future rather than the present.

Then he thinks maybe he has never seen anyone quite like Ellie.  He’s never had that connection.  How she smiles like a love song. Like the tender love song you get on Radio 6 on a Sunday morning, like maybe Kris Kristofferson or First Aid Kit. Like staying in bed on a Sunday morning, hugged by a soft warm duvet, listening to the birds sing their wake up songs. She had a way of making me believe that I belonged and it felt like coming home … when I found her. No, I’m not asking much of you, just sing, little darling, sing with me. If the fates were doing anything, they were pushing them together. Not once, not even twice, but like three times already.  Maybe now it was up to him to pull his share of the load and not keep relying on them fates to sort everything out for him.

Then he asks himself whether she feels remotely the same way.  There’s no way he can tell.  She gave him her number, didn’t she?  Doesn’t mean she’d pick up if he called.  Maybe she didn’t go down to meet up this morning after all.  How would he know?  She said she had a great time last night.  Last night they said a great many things.  They’ll always have that one Friday.  Maybe he should call it quits and bank his winnings.  

He finds that he’s back over by Avalon.  Trampolene are playing.  Pete Doherty is helping out on guitar so there’s a buzz around the tent.  Seems like he’s early enough to get a good position because the tent soon fills up as word gets round.  They’re a fine band.  They’ve got some great tunes.  Joe tries to let the good vibes flow through him and lift him out of it.  She′s got me thinking again.  That’s certainly true.  My head went round the bend.  Also true.  But does he get any inspiration from the band?  Any indication of what to do next?  Not really.  It’s not who I am, it’s who I’m gonna be.  What’s that mean?  And who on earth is he gonna be?