Temptations – "Cloud Nine" (1968)

I'm doin' fine

Up here on cloud nine

Like the singer of the Temptations’ 1968 hit single – which was the very first Motown song to win a Grammy – I’m on cloud nine.

That’s because today is the ninth birthday of my wildly popular little blog, 2 or 3 lines.

I know it’s hard to believe, but I gave birth to 2 or 3 lines – which is not an image you want to think too much about, is it? – exactly nine years ago, on November 1, 2010.

Since that day, over 1400 different songs have been featured on 2 or 3 lines.  

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I’m guessing your high-school class had reunions to celebrate the 10th and 20th anniversaries of your graduation, but that you didn’t have nine-year or 19-year reunions.

And while 30th and 40th birthdays are seen as major milestones, did your significant other organize a big surprise party to celebrate your 29th and 39th birthdays?

A 50th wedding anniversary is kind of a big deal – they call it the “golden” anniversary, after all.  But did you do anything special to celebrate your 49th wedding anniversary?  (Assuming you even remembered it.)

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The number nine doesn’t get a lot of love.

According to a 2014 survey of 30,000-odd people, seven is the world’s favorite number.  Three is its second favorite number.  Next come eight, four, five, and 13.

Nine finishes a distant 7th – only 4.8% of the survey respondents consider it to be their favorite number.

(Speaking of favorite numbers, let’s play a little game.  Think of a two-digit number that’s less than 50.  Both digits must be odd numbers, and they must be different – in other words, you can choose 13 or 35, but you can’t choose 11 or 33.  Once you’ve picked your number, keep reading – I’ll tell you what your number is at the end of this post.) 

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I have to admit that I’m guilty of giving short shrift to my blog’s ninth anniversary.  Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

Truth be told, I’m already planning how I’ll celebrate the 10th anniversary of 2 or 3 lines when it rolls around a year from today.  (I’ve picked out a very special song to feature on that day, but you’ll have to wait 365 days to find out what it is.)

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Most people (including Motown bossman Berry Gordy) think “Cloud Nine” is a song about a guy who resorts to using drugs to escape from his depressing reality.  

But Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong, the legendary Motown team who wrote “Cloud Nine,” always denied that it was about drugs.

Spare me, guys – I wasn’t born yesterday.

(Before I forget, is your number 37?  I thought so.)

Click here to listen to “Cloud Nine.”

Or click on the link below to buy the song from Amazon: