organ grinder

noun2

1. •
   The player of a barrel organ.

   • There is one beautiful sight in the East End, and only one, and it is the children dancing in the street when the organ-grinder goes his round. — 1903
2. •
   (figurative) The person who is in charge, rather than a lackey or representative; the person truly responsible for another's actions.

   • I want to speak to the organ grinder, not the monkey.