# Riff Rip-Offs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 16, 2010, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381 "2010-10-16T22:19:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2010, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/21 "2010-10-17T20:55:59Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > The Kinks stole their own riff from “All Day And All Of The Night” for “Destroyer.” The Doors stole “All Day and All of the Night” for “Hello, I Love You.” Steve Miller stole the riff from “All Right Now” from Free for “Rock 'n Me.” When called on it, he called it “an hommage” (Cue line from **Stardust Memories** ). There’s also a riff on one of his own songs on the album “Brave New World” that he reused for one of his later hits, but I forget which. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2010, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/22 "2010-10-17T23:49:47Z")
The opening guitar riff of The Strokes’ “Last Night” is a rip-off of Tom Petty’s “American Girl.” ---
**Author:** ![oliversarmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/eb8c5e/32.png) [@oliversarmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oliversarmy)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/23 "2010-10-18T03:05:18Z")
It seemed pretty obvious back in the day that Steve Miller’s “Rockin’ Me Baby” borrowed heavily from Free’s “It’s All Right Now.” Also, the intros to the Eagles’ “Duelin’ Daltons” and Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” are similar, but I don’t think either was trying to rip the other off. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/24 "2010-10-18T04:44:47Z")
Opening riffs: Nirvana “[Heart-Shaped Box](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6P0SitRwy8)” - 1993 Jets From Brazil “[I Typed For Miles](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlmnZ7CWe4M&feature=related)” - 1998 Korn “[Shoots and Ladders](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZU2k-U2Ze0o)” - 1995 Beth Orton “[She Cries Your Name](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFZc4ax4tJs&ob=av2e)” - 1996 I know there are a couple more that bug me, but I can’t think of which songs trick me with the opening notes at the moment. Maybe I’ll remember them later. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/25 "2010-10-18T09:59:03Z")
> [@Gilliver](#): > > The first one that comes to mind is when Vanilla Ice snagged the riff from Queens “Under Pressure”. > > I really dont know if that one ever went to court, but I cannot hear “Ice Ice Baby” without hearing “Under Pressure” in my head. > [@DonLogan](#): > > But that falls more under “sampling”, doesn’t it? > [@BigT](#): > > No, Vanilla Ice explicitly said it was supposed to be a completely different riff. It was the fact that it sounded so much like a sample that he got into so much trouble, at least in the press. They can all thank the Small Faces ([Get Yourself Together](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9ZcKZnlLgg))for the distinctive bass riff. ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/26 "2010-10-18T10:07:35Z")
I always thought the riff from Beck’s \*Loser \*was pretty close to \*Midnight Rider \*by the Allman Brothers. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/27 "2010-10-18T11:09:54Z")
I think the most blatant one I’ve heard is Elastica - Connection vs. Wire - Three Girl Rhumba ([http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cH7QmMTCMWI](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cH7QmMTCMWI)) Same culprits, not as blatant: Elastica - Waking Up vs. The Stranglers - No More Heroes (I think there might even have been lawyers involved there) k.d. lang - Constant Craving vs. Rolling Stones - Anybody Seen My Baby (more lawyers) And there was that Coldplay / Joe Satriani (?) one not so long ago. (Some of these examples taken from a similar thread last year.) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/28 "2010-10-18T11:26:50Z")
The way you phrased that post could lead to some confusion… Constant Craving came before Has Anybody Seen My Baby (by 5 years). It was the Stones who accidentally lifted the bit from lang, not the other way around. I’m also not sure lawyers got involved - AIUI, Jagger noticed the similarity before lang and acted to head off lawsuits _before_ they were threatened. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/29 "2010-10-18T14:48:34Z")
The opening of **Iron Butterfly** ’s _In a Gadda da Vida_ (1968) sounds a lot like _Sunshine of Your Love_ (1967) by **Cream** … ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/30 "2010-10-18T14:57:52Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > The way you phrased that post could lead to some confusion… > > Constant Craving came before Has Anybody Seen My Baby (by 5 years). It was the Stones who accidentally lifted the bit from lang, not the other way around. > > I’m also not sure lawyers got involved - AIUI, Jagger noticed the similarity before lang and acted to head off lawsuits _before_ they were threatened. The story I’ve read is that Keith Richards’ daughter heard the track shortly before the album was releaed, and began singing “Constant Craving” along with it. Mick and Keith were puzzled, and she ahd to explain that their song sounded just like K.D. Lang’s. To avoid trouble, they gave K.D. credit and shared the royalties with her. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/31 "2010-10-18T14:58:24Z")
Some riffs are so recycled that they might as well be in the Public Domain. _I Want To Hod Your Hand/Just What I Needed/With or Without You_ falls into this category. So would any I-IV-V-I riff. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/32 "2010-10-18T15:47:05Z")
You can’t get much more blatant than the Velvet Underground’s “There She Goes Again”, which rips off the riff from Marvin Gaye’s “Hitch Hike”. (But both songs are great.) ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/33 "2010-10-18T16:28:25Z")
Stones: [Jumping Jack Flash](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwmuiq4oMYc) Kinks: [Catch Me Now I’m Falling](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoS2mQxSo4g)(riff starts about 40 seconds in…) ---
**Author:** ![ThePylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@ThePylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThePylon)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/34 "2010-10-18T17:20:38Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Hall & Oates [I Can’t Go for That](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccenFp_3kq8) from 1981. > > Michael Jackson [Billie Jean](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zi_XLOBDo_Y&ob=av3e) from 1982. > > Not the most blatant, but you be the judge. From Darryl Hall himself: "“No question about it,” Hall agrees. “Michael Jackson once said directly to me that he hoped I didn’t mind that he copped that groove. That’s okay; it’s something we all do. " What I found more intereesting is this: “[Eddie] Van Halen told me that he copied the synth part from ‘Kiss on My List’ and used it in ‘Jump.’ I don’t have a problem with that at all.” … never noticed that until now. Cool! From here: [http://mixonline.com/mag/audio\_hall\_oates\_cant/](http://mixonline.com/mag/audio_hall_oates_cant/) ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/35 "2010-10-18T18:45:17Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > And if the Stones had to sue the Verve, why didn’t they sue Buffalo Springfield? > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8\_VbImuG71M](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_VbImuG71M) > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVH-5v-BhHM](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVH-5v-BhHM) I believe The Verve used a sample for Bittersweet Symphony, rather than just sounding like it. Wikipedia has this to say: > [@](#): > > Originally, The Verve had negotiated a licence to use a sample from the Oldham recording, but it was successfully argued that the Verve had used ‘too much’ of the sample.[5] Despite having original lyrics, the music of “Bitter Sweet Symphony” is partially based on the Oldham track, which led to a lawsuit with ABKCO Records, Allen Klein’s company that owns the rights to the Rolling Stones material of the 1960s. The matter was eventually settled, with copyright of the song reverting to ABKCO and songwriting credits to Jagger and Richards. Note that last bit - Jagger and Richards no longer hold the rights to the song and were not responsible for the law suit. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/36 "2010-10-18T18:47:22Z")
> [@An\_Arky](#): > > So would any I-IV-V-I riff. But that isn’t really a riff is it? It is just a chord progression. A riff involves much more than simply which chords are played in what order. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/37 "2010-10-19T00:15:44Z")
The Heavy sampled Dyke and the Blazers for their song How You Like Me Now. > **[The Heavy's 'How You Like Me Now?' - Discover the Sample Source](https://www.whosampled.com/sample/22643/The-Heavy-How-You-Like-Me-Now%3F-Dyke-%26-the-Blazers-Let-a-Woman-Be-a-Woman-Let-a-Man-Be-a-Man/)** > > "How You Like Me Now?" by The Heavy contains a sample of another track. Listen to both tracks on WhoSampled, the ultimate database of sampled music, cover songs and remixes. I love this song a lot and I was a bit disapointed to hear that parts of it was sampled from another song. Though I shouldn’t have been suprised at this, seeing as how The Heavy are so influenced by funk, ska, and so many other styles. So does it diminish an artist when they sample another work? I think in some cases, like the Heavy, they like the song so much they want to use it to share it with more people. On the other hand, Ice Ice Baby sounds like a cheap rip off of Under Pressure. On the third hand I have no idea what I’m talking about so I could be literally talking out of my figurative ass. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/38 "2010-10-19T02:32:40Z")
> [@postcards](#): > > The Rubinoos: I Want to be Your Boyfriend > > The Rolling Stones: Get Off of My Cloud Huh? I dont’ get it. “I Want to Be Your Boyfriend” is a gorgeous little pop masterpiece, with lyrics that actually scan (more rare than you’d think) and fit the music, and a lovely guitar solo. “Get Off of My Cloud” is great too. But I can’t hear it as source material for the Rubinoos’ hit. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/39 "2010-10-19T02:40:22Z")
> [@Meurglys](#): > > The opening of **Iron Butterfly** ’s _In a Gadda da Vida_ (1968) sounds a lot like _Sunshine of Your Love_ (1967) by **Cream** … I’ve confused the two often when playing them back in my mind. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381/40 "2010-10-19T02:52:52Z")
[Springsteen copies Kiss](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uANKzbaucU) and [Kiss copies Poison](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm4kBlImVXU). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/riff-rip-offs/557381.md?page=3)