2006-12-21 08:34:25 · 9 answers · asked by simplypink_ox 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Quotations
The phrase to be on cloud nine, meaning that one was blissfully happy, started life in the United States and has been widely known there since the 1950s; it’s since spread worldwide. It’s said to have been popularised by the Johnny Dollar radio show of that period, in which every time the hero was knocked unconscious he was transported to Cloud Nine. But that wasn’t the origin of the phrase. It’s been around since the 1930s, though early examples show a lot of numerical variability, with the cloud sometimes being as low as number seven or eight or as high as thirty-nine, though seven and nine were most common.
These discrepancies make me suspect the usual explanation of its origin, which is that it comes from the US Weather Bureau. The story is that this organisation describes (or once described) clouds by an arithmetic sequence. Level Nine was the very highest cumulonimbus, which can reach 30,000 or 40,000 feet and appear as glorious white mountains in the sky. So if you were on cloud nine you were at the very peak of existence.
2006-12-21 08:42:16 · answer #1 · answered by sugar_pink_candy 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
The Temptations Cloud Nine Lyrics
Dennis: The childhood part of my life
Wasn't very pretty, see...
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Dennis: I was born and raised
In the slums of the city,
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Dennis: It was a one-room shack
That slept ten other children beside me,
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Dennis: We hardly enough food
Or room to sleep
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Dennis: It was hard times...
I needed somethin' to ease my troubled mind
Paul: Oooh listen...
My father didn't know the meaning of work
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Paul: He disrespected mama,
And treated us like dirt
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Paul: I left home seeking a job
That I never did find
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Paul: Depressed and down-hearted
And I took to cloud nine
Temptations: Boom, boom-boom, boom
Paul: I'm doing fine
Up here, on cloud nine
Paul: Listen, one more time
Paul: I'm doing fine
Up here, on cloud nine
Dennis: Folks down there tell me...
Dennis: They say give yourself a chance,son,
don't let life pass you by,
Temptations: Woo, woo, woo-oo
Dennis: But the world, around you's, is a rat race
Where only the strongest survive,
It's a dog-eat-dog world
And that ain't no lie,
Temptations: Ain't no lie
Dennis: Listen it ain't even safe no more
To walk the streets at night
Eddie: I'm doing fine
Temptations: On cloud nine
Dennis: Let me tell you 'bout cloud nine...
Temptations: Cloud nine
Paul: You can be what you want to be
Temptations: Cloud Nine
Dennis: You ain't got no responsibility
Temptations: Cloud Nine
Eddie: And every man, every man is free
Temptations: Cloud nine
Dennis: You're a million miles from reality
Otis: Reality
Temptations: I wanna' stay up
Eddie and Otis: Higher
Temptations: Up up, Up and away
Temptations: Cloud nine
Eddie: I wanna' say I love the life I live,
And I'm going to
Eddie/Otis: live, the life I love
Eddie: Or be on cloud nine...
I, I, I, I, I, I'm ridin' high
Temptations: On cloud nine
Dennis: You're as free as a bird in flight
Temptations: Cloud nine
Melvin: There's no difference between day and night
Temptations: Cloud nine
Eddie: It's a world of love and harmony
Temptations: Cloud nine
Dennis: You're a million miles from reality
Otis: Reality
Temptations: I wanna' stay up
Eddie and Otis: Higher
Temptations: Up up, up and away
Temptations: Cloud Nine
Paul: You can be what you want to be, ah
Temptations: Cloud nine
Dennis: You ain't got no responsibility
Temptations: Cloud nine
Eddie: Every man in his mind is free
Temptations: Cloud nine
Dennis: You're a million miles from reality
Temptations: Cloud nine
Paul: You can be what you want to be
Temptations: all of them weave in and out with ad libs
and choruses of "Boom-booms"
A journey into the "60's": sex, drugs, rock and roll, Vietnam,
protests, Top 40 song for months!
You should all know about such!
But we survived, well most of us....
2006-12-21 10:13:33 · answer #2 · answered by cruisingyeti 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Extremely happy,but is most generally referenced to women and romance.
She's on cloud nine.
2006-12-25 01:39:33 · answer #3 · answered by Ralph T 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Take a look at this explanation and history of the phrase:
http://www.mtannoyances.com/?p=119
..and it seems this question was asked in the U.K. version of Yahoo Answers:
http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060908094954AA44Opu
2006-12-21 08:45:50 · answer #4 · answered by dontknow 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its an idiom that means that they're extremely happy, like nothing can happen wrong to them.
2006-12-21 08:41:34 · answer #5 · answered by AoPS-er 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means they are very happy. See http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-clo1.htm for some info on the origin of the phrase and what it means.
2006-12-21 08:42:14 · answer #6 · answered by computerguy103 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They're really happy and their feet don't touch the ground.
2006-12-21 08:39:00 · answer #7 · answered by Taylor29 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means they are happy / blissful.
2006-12-21 08:42:22 · answer #8 · answered by joshtek 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they feel so happy or relaxed like they are floating.
2006-12-21 08:37:34 · answer #9 · answered by texascomet 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋