i'm not a well-known artist well, many here aren't (i guess) and i have some great stuff i would like to share with people like you, however:
i see a riff
i play it
it sounds cool
i feel happy i played a cool riff
almost nobody knows that riff
see the temptation??
why shouldn't i steal it? coz it would be stealing!
i know i wouldn't steal, how can i be sure nobody else does?
it's really hard to protect your stuff that way coz even if you had copyright how could you know if somebody from indonesia (for example, i have nothing against indonesians) is playing your stuff saying it's his and gets payed for it?
that is very important for me since i don't want my music tanted with money (see my signiture?)

__________________
God sent meat,
and the Devil sent cooks.

Excuse me while i keep this eye

you could say you borrowed it... and after you had a milloin seller you give the riff back again *LOL*

__________________
Holiness is in right action and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves. What you decide to do every day makes you a good person... or not.
Azrael´s Tricks

you can modify it by JUST A TINT, like Vanilla Ice did!

lol.

in actuallity, nothing is original but just modified over and over and over. Very few people come up with original riffs. They mostly spin offs over wriffs in combination with other riffs even though it might be unconscious that you actually understand this when composing. its much to the same effect as writing, check the bible, everystory ever written is essentially in there in a form or another...now where the bible on rock?

__________________
WWSD? What would stevie do?

i once had a post complaining about that nothing i write is really original but i have some cool stuff (at least i think so) and you know how band always recycle their own material after a while most of their songs sound quite the same
i once heard a disc and haven't noticed that there were about 15 tracks instead of big long one track!

__________________
God sent meat,
and the Devil sent cooks.

Excuse me while i keep this eye

that stuff happens, alot more with live material and jamming though.

But did those 15 tracks sound good? I think thats the only real important thing...except that there wouldn't be much variety...

All I have to say is, I agree with Polera. Everything just get tweeked a bit and it sounds a bit different.