Carl Dawkins, The Wailers - Cloud Nine Lyrics

Childhood part of my life, it wasn't very pretty.
You see, I was born and raised in the slums of the city,
It was a one room shack that slept ten other children besides me.
We hardly had enough food or room to sleep.
It was hard times,
Needed something to ease my troubled mind.
Listen! my father didn't know the meaning of work,
He disrespected mama, and treated us like dirt.
I left home, seekin' a job that I never did find,
Depressed and downhearted I took to cloud nine,
I'm doin' fine, up here on cloud nine.
Listen one more time I'm doin' fine, up here on cloud nine.
Folks down there tell me,
They say, "give yourself a chance son, don't let life pass you by".
But the world of reality is a rat race where only the strongest survive,
It's a dog eat dog world, and that ain't no lie.
Listen! it ain't even safe no more to walk the streets at night,
I'm doin' fine, on cloud nine.
Let me tell you about cloud nine.

Cloud nine, you can be what you wanna be
(cloud nine) you ain't got no responsibility,
And ev'ry man, ev'ry man is free
(cloud nine) and you're a million miles from reality.
I wanna say I love the life I live,
And I'm gonna live the life I love up here on cloud nine.
I'm riding high
On cloud nine, you're as free as a bird in flight
(cloud nine) there's no diff'rence between day and night
(cloud nine) it's a world of love and harmony
(cloud nine) you're a million miles from reality.

Cloud nine, you can be what you wanna be
Cloud nine) you ain't got no responsibility,
And ev'ry man, ev'ry man is free
(cloud nine) and you're a million miles from reality.
(cloud nine) (cloud nine) (cloud nine)