Belle of the Blues - Janis Ian

I’m the belle of the blues, and it’s easy to see\nIf I win or I lose, it’s all one to me\nI was born on a shelf in the rare books library\nI reside by myself with my books and my T.V.\nI’m an old age pension for the fossilized routine\nAnybody for nostalgia, put a record on and see\nHere’s a memory of olden days\nAnd a heartbreak grown cold\nAll that glitters isn’t gold\nYou get no love for free\nYou live and you die\nAnd I’ll probably throw it away\nBut in the end it’s mine\nAnd nobody has a right to say\n«Go down lightly — go down silently»\nI’ll go down screaming\n«Give it back — it belongs to me»\nI’m the belle of the blues — I’m used to mingling\nWith the crème de la crème of higher society\nI promise them roses, and an eight-by-ten of me\nBut when the party’s over\nThey’re all too glad to leave\nTheir children sing of sorrow\nIt’s the same old routine\nThey’ve begged and they’ve borrowed\nSomeone else’s misery\nIt’s an easy act to follow\nAt least, an easy one for me\nGive me my tomorrows\nYou can have my memories\nSouvenirs from an old-fashioned school\nPlays coquette on the pillow\nLike an old-fashioned fool\nGo down lightly\nGo down silently\nYou go down lonely\nYou go down like me