Don't know if it's true, but growing up I always thought this song was about Rubin "Hurricane" Carter who was a famous boxer ("prize fighter") who was wrongly convicted of a murder at a bar which took place in the middle of the night ("shadow stabbing"). He was imprisoned for two decades during which time he wrote his autobiography and his version of events:
"While incarcerated at Trenton State and Rahway State prisons, Carter continued to maintain his innocence by defying the authority of the prison guards, refusing to wear an inmate's uniform, and becoming a recluse in his cell. He read and studied extensively, and in 1974 published his autobiography, The 16th Round: From Number 1 Contender to Number 45472, to widespread acclaim."
You can see the parallels with the writing references in the song and "frenzied pace of the mind inside the cell" and "heart can't forget about this self-defense" as he's writing his story to claim his innocence. Also, "thumbing the cool blade" could be a clever play on words referring to the fact that Carter's true blade was his pencil a la "pen is mightier than the sword". It seems like the whole song stages this furious scribbling of words almost as if it's a pre-fight routine ("I'm so nervous, I'm so tense"), or like he's awaiting his final verdict/appeal.
Don't know if it's true, but growing up I always thought this song was about Rubin "Hurricane" Carter who was a famous boxer ("prize fighter") who was wrongly convicted of a murder at a bar which took place in the middle of the night ("shadow stabbing"). He was imprisoned for two decades during which time he wrote his autobiography and his version of events:
"While incarcerated at Trenton State and Rahway State prisons, Carter continued to maintain his innocence by defying the authority of the prison guards, refusing to wear an inmate's uniform, and becoming a recluse in his cell. He read and studied extensively, and in 1974 published his autobiography, The 16th Round: From Number 1 Contender to Number 45472, to widespread acclaim."
You can see the parallels with the writing references in the song and "frenzied pace of the mind inside the cell" and "heart can't forget about this self-defense" as he's writing his story to claim his innocence. Also, "thumbing the cool blade" could be a clever play on words referring to the fact that Carter's true blade was his pencil a la "pen is mightier than the sword". It seems like the whole song stages this furious scribbling of words almost as if it's a pre-fight routine ("I'm so nervous, I'm so tense"), or like he's awaiting his final verdict/appeal.