16gb ipod touch 1st gen sleep wake button doesn't work.

Connect to itunes and do a restore from there. Assuming you can switch the thing on! Mine is the same, It started with the wake button only working sometimes, then by itself and eventually squeezing the case near the wake button would do the trick. I did try to fix but without success. These are very fiddly and the wake button disconnects from the main board when the case is opened making it very hard to test.
When not in use I keep the brightness at minimum and set the auto lock to never.
Good luck