A song about a love that feels like a sideshow act
Sam Moore and Dave Prater couldn't stand each other -- traveling in separate cars, staying in separate hotels. But when Isaac Hayes and David Porter handed them , the animosity vanished into the harmonies. The song is about a man thanking a woman for everything she's given him. The singers couldn't thank each other, but they could sing gratitude together for three perfect minutes.
The contradiction was the magic.