It was December the sixth 1983 
I was doin` time for armed robbery 
At four in the morning, I was sitting in my cell 
I heard a whistle blow, and 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 shit 


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