Released: April 1, 1983

Songwriter: Michael Omartian Donna Summer

Producer: Michael Omartian

[Chorus:]
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right

[Verse 1:]
Onetta there in the corner stand
And wonders where she is
And it's strange to her
Some people seem to have everything
Nine A.M. on the hour hand
And she's waiting for the bell
And she's looking real pretty
Just wait for her clientele

[Chorus:]
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right

[Verse 2:]
Twenty-eight years have come and gone
And she's seen a lot of tears
Of the ones who come in
They really seem to need her there
It's a sacrifice, working day to day
For little money, just tips for pay
But it's worth it all
Just to hear them say that they care

[Chorus:]
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right

[Bridge:]
She already knows
She's seen her bad times
She already knows
These are the good times
She'll never sell out
She never will
Not for a dollar bill
She works hard...

[Chorus:]
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right
She works hard for the money
So hard for it, honey
She works hard for the money
So you better treat her right

Donna Summer

As the unquestioned queen of disco, the one and only Donna Summer lit up the late 70s and 80s with flashy, exuberant vocals and automatic earworms. Born LaDonna Adrian Gaines on Dec. 31, 1948, Summer moved to Germany after being cast in a Munich production of Hair. There, she happened to meet Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, and the trio conglomerated to form a dynamic music team. With Moroder, Summer forged together her first album, The Hostage, which reached moderate success in Northern Europe. Summer’s big break, however, would come later with the release of 1975’s sexual “Love to Love You Baby”, which became one of disco’s first mainstream hits and reached #2 on the Billboard Charts.

1977 came around with the concept album I Remember Yesterday, which featured the Top 10 single “I Feel Love”. The next year, Summer hit the silver screen with the movie Thank God It’s Friday, whose soundtrack featured one of her own the iconic “Last Dance.” This would later become one of the disco legends' signature songs. “Dance” would take home an Academy Award for Best Original Song, a Grammy, and a Golden Globe, and it jumped to a peak of #3 on the charts.

Yet Summer’s illustrious career was far from finished – Summer’s first live album Live and More featured the single “MacArthur Park”, a melting ballad that was a cover of the Jimmy Webb ballad of the same name. “Park” became Summer’s first – and perhaps most memorable – No. 1 hit, and cemented her status as a vocalist as well as a performer. With the track, she became the first female in modern rock history to hold the top spot in both the Hot 100 and the Billboard 200. 1979, though, would really be the peak of her career.