This was written by the Texas singer Willis Alan Ramsey in 1972, who recorded it as "Muskrat Candlelight." America recorded the song on their 1973 album Hat Trick (it charted at #67 US) before Captain & Tennille recorded their hit version in 1976.
This song really is about two muskrats making love. It's not to be taken seriously, and even contains synthesized sound effects to simulate the muskrat copulation. This sound was played at the end of the song and included in the end groove of the 45 single, so when the record ended, it played the muskrats on a loop until the record player was attended.
America was known for their self-penned, panoramic songs "A Horse With No Name" and "Ventura Highway" when they issued "Muskrat Love" as the first single from their third album, Hat Trick, in 1973. A rather literal cover song about little furry creatures was a questionable career move, and the album underperformed. For their next album, they brought in a rainmaker: Beatles producer George Martin. It worked, and they recovered with the hit "Tin Man."
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