Accidental theft?

[ShredderMaximus]

Earlier today while I was wanking around on my bass, I thought I wrote a pretty bitchin riff and was fairly happy, so started writing a song around it. Fast forward to a bit later in the day and I'm hangin out with a guitar buddy of mine. We were jamming a bit, and I thought I'd unleash some of the new awesome on him. After I was done, he comes at me and asks, "I thought you wrote a new riff?" I was pretty confused, and asked him what the frick he was talking about. "Dude, thats a Dissection riff dude!" I proceded to stink eye the b******. Then, mid stink eye, I realized he was right, I had accidentally ripped off one of my favorite bands songs "Nights Blood!" I felt pretty dingus-y and acted like I didn't care, but was pretty bummed actually because I was thinking about how awesome this new riff was, and how rad the song would be, then to have it torn from me was fairly tragic.

So now I sit, broken hearted, done with bass (for tonight) and thought I would share my story here on TB and see what you veterans (or noobs) had to say about this phenomenon, and if its ever happened to you. Any of you ever written a riff (or song) that you thought was your own, only to find out later that it had been reverse stolen? And what did you do?

Lookin forward,
S/M

[Truktek2]

It happens, just ask Coldplay.

[T-Bird]

Hi.

There's only so much that can be done with 3 chords . Or the Pentatonic scale

Seriously though, almost every riff (or chord progression for that matter) is already in use. Somewhere.

Don't worry, You'll eventually come up with a riff that no one recognizes .

Regards
Sam

[Plays_For_Dog]

YouTube - The Axis of Awesome 4 Chords

Yeap. It's inevitable. Best you can do is put them back in, mix them up and try to spit them back out in a different structure/pattern/tempo/algorithm....

[ShredderMaximus]

hahaha, that axis of awesome video is well.... awesome!

But I'm talkin more about lead melody/harmony lines, the ones that are unmistakably original to a song, like if you were to say take Ozzy Osbournes Crazy Train riff and try to make it your own. No matter what, its gonna sound like Crazy Train.

[ShredderMaximus]

hahaha, just found this, a few stretches for sure, but plenty of lulz anyways!
YouTube - Popular Songs That Were Ripped Off
The Avril Lavigne one made me lol hard!

[Floyd Eye]

One song is plagiarism, ten songs is research. lol

[AltGrendel]

Originally Posted by Truktek2

It happens, just ask Coldplay.

..or George Harrison's estate.

My Sweet Lord

[ShredderMaximus]

Following the song's release, musical similarities between "My Sweet Lord" and The Chiffons' hit "He's So Fine" led to a lengthy legal battle over the rights to the composition. Billboard magazine, in an article dated 6 March 1971, stated that Harrison's royalty payments from the recording had been halted worldwide. Harrison stated that he was inspired to write "My Sweet Lord" after hearing the Edwin Hawkins Singers' "Oh Happy Day".[citation needed]
In the U.S. federal court decision in the case, known as Bright Tunes Music v. Harrisongs Music,[3] Harrison was found to have "subconsciously" copied the earlier song. He was ordered to surrender the majority of royalties from "My Sweet Lord" and partial royalties from All Things Must Pass. Former manager Allen Klein, who earlier had supported Harrison's case, became the owner of Bright Tunes, after they parted ways. Harrison claimed in a BBC interview with Annie Nightingale that the Judge in the case said that he liked Harrison's version of "My Sweet Lord" less.
The Chiffons would later record "My Sweet Lord" to capitalise on the publicity generated by the lawsuit. Country singer Jody Miller recorded a country chart top-five cover of "He's So Fine", which plays on the two songs' similarities by featuring the same guitar breaks played on the Harrison recording.
Shortly thereafter, Harrison (who would eventually buy the rights to "He's So Fine")[4] wrote and recorded a song about the court case named "This Song", which includes "This tune has nothing 'Bright' about it." "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" and "Rescue Me" are also mentioned in the record.

Thats some crazy stuff right there! Thanks for sharing Grendel!

[rtslinger]

It was tuff. But when I was writing for my band back in the late 70 and 80's I did not listen to popular music. I listen to classical and jazz so I wouldn't be influenced by what was out there I was working on building a formula of my own. My hairband was a combo of hairband type songs with progressive guitar and bass work no simple thump bass lines but hook heavy which you need to sale music back then. Not songs about partying all the time but, songs about life and directions it takes you in good bad and other wise (evil) example Rippers Blade a song about my theory of who Jack the Ripper was and in the song putting myself in the place of narrator and victim. Change for the Better about wanting to change your life for the better but things that you face getting there lost love, death, crime, drug abuse, lying. Again with me taking the position of outside looking in God like talking to each character involved as you would in a novel with the chorus I can't say you didn't even try to change for the better

[Ursus Tyrannus]

This put the biggest smile on my face.
I've had this exact experience several times in my life. I used to hate working out a song, presenting to band members and having them say "I like the way you put that (insert Black Sabbath or Motorhead riff) as the chorus". Aargh! The rhythm guitarist did it bad with Ramones riffs. After a while he would do it on purpose to see if we could spot them, until he just wrote a song made entirely of Ramones riffs.

[Dertygen]

Chicago-25 or 6 to 4 and Green Day-Brain Stew is the worst because not only was it almost blatant, it's both about being coked up in a room