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The EntertainerBilly Joel

Released: October 11, 1974

Songwriter: Billy Joel

Producer: Mike G. Stewart

[Verse 1]
I am the entertainer
And I know just where I stand
Another serenader
And another long-haired band
Today, I am your champion
I may have won your hearts
But I know the game, you'll forget my name
And I won't be here in another year
If I don't stay on the charts

[Cut verse]
I am the entertainer
I dress to fit the style
I wear all kinds of sparkles
I flash the crowd my smile
And when the night is over
And I stand without my clothes
Perspiration stains and varicose veins
My eyes look shot
My belly's got a pot
And there's a pimple on my nose

[Verse 2]
I am the entertainer
And I've had to pay my price
The things I did not know at first
I learned by doin' twice
Ah, but still they come to haunt me
Still they want their say
So I've learned to dance
With a hand in my pants
Let 'em rub my neck, and I write 'em a check
And they go their merry way

[Verse 3]
I am the entertainer
Been all around the world
I've played all kinds of palaces
And laid all kinds of girls
I can't remember faces
I don't remember names
Ah, but what the hell
You know it's just as well
Cause after a while and a thousand miles
It all becomes the same

[Verse 4]
I am the entertainer
I bring to you my songs
I'd like to spend a day or two
But I can't stay that long
No, I've got to meet expenses
I got to stay in line
Gotta get those fees to the agencies
And I'd love to stay but there's bills to pay
So I just don't have the time

[Verse 5]
I am the entertainer, I come to do my show
You've heard my latest record
It's been on the radio
Ah, it took me years to write it
They were the best years of my life
It was a beautiful song, but it ran too long
If you're gonna have a hit
You gotta make it fit
So they cut it down to 3:05

[Verse 6]
I am the entertainer
The idol of my age
I make all kinds of money
When I go on the stage
Ah, you've seen me in the papers
I've been in the magazines
But if I go cold, I won't get sold
I'll get put in the back in the discount rack
Like another can of beans

[Outro]
I am the entertainer
And I know just where I stand
Another serenader
And another long-haired band
Today, I am your champion
I may have won your hearts
But I know the game, you'll forget my name
And I won't be here in another year
If I don't stay on the charts

Billy Joel

Billy Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American pianist, singer/songwriter, producer, and composer who ranks as one of the most iconic and influential artists from the mid to late 20th century.

He is the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, wrote a total of 121 songs that achieved 33 Top 40 hits in the US, a 6-time Grammy winner out of 23 nominations, and one of the best-selling recording artists of all-time with 150 million albums sold worldwide.

Joel has since continued to tour and sells out in stadiums globally. He also delved into classical music composition, arranging an album, Fantasies and Delusions released in 2001, opened a motorcycle shop on his native Long Island, and is now regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Among his numerous accolades, he was inducted in the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992, bestowed with the Kennedy Center Honors in 2013, and awarded the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song by the Library of Congress in 2014.

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