According to John A. Lomax in his "American Ballads and Folk Songs" published in 1934, from the song "Goin' Home". The line "Got a rainbow tied all 'round my shoulder" refers to the "Rainbow" as "the arc of a swinging pick, probably going so fast it becomes red hot." This song is in the section entitled "Songs from Southern Chain Gangs".
The original lyrics and music of the song entered the public domain in the United States in 2024.[2]