"Cloud Nine" is a

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

hit single recorded by

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

for the

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

label.Show 50 - The Soul Reformation: Phase three, soul music at the summit. [Part 6] : UNT Digital Library
/ref> It was the first of their singles to feature

Dennis Edwards Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a serie ...

instead of David Ruffin in the lineup, was the first of producer Norman Whitfield's psychedelic soul tracks, and won Motown its first

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

. The song was written by Whitfield and former Motown artist

Barrett Strong Barrett Strong (born February 5, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter. Strong was the first artist to record a hit for Motown, although he is best known for his work as a songwriter, particularly in association with producer Norman Whitfi ...

Background

In 1968,

Sly & the Family Stone Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, it was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, and psychedelic music. Its core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-i ...

had a hit with their single " Dance to the Music", and Temptations member

Otis Williams Otis Williams (born Otis Miles Jr.; October 30, 1941) is an American baritone singer.Ribowsky, Mark (2010). ''Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Troubled Lives and Endearing Soul of the Temptations''. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 7–9 He is o ...

introduced Norman Whitfield to the band's music. At first, Whitfield did not want to produce anything with such a radically different sound. "I don't want to get into all that crazy shit," he said. "That ain't nothing but a little passing fancy."Williams, Otis and Romanowski, Patricia (1988, updated 2002). ''Temptations''. Lanham, MD: Cooper Square.
pp. 138–140
Within a few weeks, however, he had created the backing tracks for the newest Temptations single, a psychedelic-styled number called "Cloud Nine", and stuck primarily to such songs well into the early 1970s.

Recording

Featuring all five Temptations trading lead vocals ''à la'' The Family Stone, "Cloud Nine" was a marked departure from the standard Tempts sound: wah-wah

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

s and a harder, driving beat propelled the record, as opposed to

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

s and strings. The song also features the Cuban percussionist

Mongo Santamaria Mongo may refer to: Geography Africa * Mongo, Chad, a Sahel city * Apostolic Vicariate of Mongo (Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction) * Mongo, Sierra Leone, a chiefdom * Mongo River (Little Scarces River), Guinea and Sierra Leone, a tributa ...

on conga drums. Edwards,

Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temptatio ...

and Paul Williams swap leads on the verses, bridges and choruses, such as this example from the first bridge:

Paul Williams: "You can be what you wanna be..."
Dennis Edwards Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a serie ...
: "You ain't got no responsibility..."
Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temptatio ...
: "And every man, every man is free..."
Dennis Edwards Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a serie ...
: "And you're a million miles from reality..."

Otis Williams has some brief lead lines on the last half of the song (i.e.: he repeats "Reality…"), and

Melvin Franklin David Melvin English (October 12, 1942 – February 23, 1995) better known by the stage name Melvin Franklin, or his nickname "Blue", was an American bass singer. Franklin was best known for his role as a founding member of Motown singing g ...

also gets a line near the end ("There's no difference between day and night…"). The lyrics for the song were about the struggles and pains of living poor, as opposed to being about relationship and love troubles. The broke, unemployed, and despondent main character in the song proclaims that he gets over all of his problems by "riding high on 'cloud nine. This has been interpreted by many (including Motown head

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record la ...

) as a reference to

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

, although Whitfield, Strong, and The Temptations deny that "Cloud Nine" is about drugs. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' called it "near revolutionary," praising the "touches of progressive pop in the track, elevated lyric message and the solid performance." "Cloud Nine" won Motown its first

in 1969 for Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance, Vocal or Instrumental, reached #2 in the U.S. R&B chart and #6 in the U.S. Pop chart, and led the way for the Temptations' full-blown venture into

psychedelia Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...

, with increasingly eclectic and socio-political-themed records, including "

Runaway Child, Running Wild "Runaway Child, Running Wild" (shown as "Run Away Child, Running Wild" on the label of the original single) is a 1969 hit single for the Gordy ( Motown) label, performed by The Temptations and produced by Norman Whitfield. The single was both the ...

", "

Psychedelic Shack ''Psychedelic Shack'' is the twelfth studio album by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label released in 1970. Completely written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and produced by Whitfield, ''Psychedelic Shack'' almost completely abando ...

", and "

Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today) "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)" is a 1970 hit single for The Temptations. It was released on the Gordy (Motown) label, and written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. The song was used to anchor The Temptations' 1970 ' ...

", following within the coming two years.

Personnel

* Lead and background vocals by

(verses; choruses; bridge; ad-libs),

(verses; choruses; bridge; ad-libs), Paul Williams (verses; choruses; bridge; ad-libs),

(last verse; ad-libs), and

(last verse; bridge; outro; ad-libs) * Instrumentation by

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

, featuring: ** Bass guitar:

James Jamerson James Lee Jamerson (January 29, 1936 – August 2, 1983) was an American bass player. He was the uncredited bassist on most of the Motown Records hits in the 1960s and early 1970s (Motown did not list session musician credits on their releases u ...

** Lead guitar:

Dennis Coffey Dennis James Coffey (born November 11, 1940) is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings, and is well known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single " Scorpio". Biography Coffey learned to play guitar at the ...

** Drums: Spider Webb,

Uriel Jones Uriel Jones (June 13, 1934 – March 24, 2009) was an American musician. Jones was a recording session drummer for Motown's in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, during the 1960s and early 1970s. Biography Jones was first hired by Motown as a ...

** Tambourine:

Greg Reeves Gregory Allen Reeves (born ) is an American bass guitarist. He is best known for playing bass on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's album ''Déjà Vu'' (1970). Early life Reeves grew up in Warren, Ohio, and graduated from Warren Western Reserve Hi ...

Other recordings

This song has been

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Bob Marley and the Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as The Wailers, and prior to that The Wailing Rudeboys, The Wailing Wailers and The Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Robert ...

under the name Rebel Hop.

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

sings lead vocals on a version retitled "Doin' Fine" on the 1972 LP ''In a Broken Dream'' by Australian rock band

Python Lee Jackson Python Lee Jackson were an Australian rock band active from 1965 to 1968, before a brief sojourn in the United Kingdom from late 1968 to mid-1969. The group had recorded a single, "In a Broken Dream" (October 1970), featuring Rod Stewart as gues ...

. Mongo Santamaria recorded his own, instrumental version in 1969 for the ''Stone Soul'' album; released as a single ( Columbia 4-44740), it reached #32 Pop, #33 R&B and #30

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

Certifications

Footnotes

{{authority control 1968 singles 1968 songs Gordy Records singles Motown singles Psychedelic soul songs Song recordings produced by Norman Whitfield Songs about poverty Songs written by Barrett Strong Songs written by Norman Whitfield The Temptations songs