It was December the 6th
Nineteen eighty three
I was doin' time
For armed robbery
At four in the morning
I was sitting in my cell
I heard a whistle blow
Then I heard somebody yell
There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on
Up in cell block number nine
Our warden said come out
With your hands up in the air
If you don't stop this riot
You're all gonna get the chair
And Scarface Jones said
It's too late to quit
Pass the dynamite
Don't you give me any sh@t
There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on
Up in cell block number nine
On the 47th hour
The nerve gas got our men
We're all back in our cells
But every now and then
There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on
There's a riot going on
Up in cellblock number nine
Up in cellblock number nine
Up in cellblock number nine