Lyrics:

(Norman WhitfieldBarrett Strong) The childhood part of my life wasn't very pretty You see, I was born and raised in the slums of the city It was a one-room shack we slept in, the children beside me We hardly had enough food or rooms It was a hard time Needed somethin' to ease my troubled mind. Ooooh listen Father didn't know the meaning of work He disrespected Mama and treated her slightly I left home seekin' a job that I never did find The first thing, downhearted, I took to Cloud 9 I'm doin' fine up here on Cloud 9 Listen, one more time I'm doin' fine up here on Cloud 9 Folks now tell me They say, 'Give yourself a chance And don't let life pass you by.' But the world around you is a rat race Where only the strong survive It's a dog-eat-dog world and that ain't no lie It ain't even safe no more To walk the streets at night I'm doin' fine on Cloud 9 Let me tell you about Cloud 9 (Cloud 9) You can be what you wanna be (Cloud 9) You ain't got no responsibility (Cloud 9) Yeah, every man, every man is free (Cloud 9) You're a million miles from reality (Reality) I wanna say (up) higher (up up and away) Cloud 9 I wanna say I love the life I live And I'm gonna live the life I love Up here on Cloud 9 Uh uh uh uh, I'm ridin' high on Cloud 9 You're as free as a bird in flight (Cloud 9) There's no diff'rence 'tween day and night (Cloud 9) It's a world of love and harmony (Cloud 9) You're a million miles from reality (Reality) I wanna say (up) higher (up up and away) (Cloud 9) You can be what you wanna be (Cloud 9) You ain't got no responsibility (Cl