As Thomas tells The Peverett Phile blargh …
The riff wasn’t totally spontaneous, it was sort of contrived [from riffs] I’d been listening to at the time. It’s kind of weird. If you listen to “The Price of Love” by the Everly Brothers, you’ll get the rhythmic pattern.
And if you listen to “You Gotta Lose” by Richard Hell & The Voidoids, you put those notes to the riff you get “Pump It Up.” It’s a hybrid riff.
Then I was left with a half a bar so I added “You Really Got Me,” which was one of the best songs ever written. So, that was it.
I love this shit. Everybody rips off somebody – some are just more creative about it than others.