The song, a meditation on the American experience, is based on the melody of the hymn "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded" and bears a striking resemblance to JS Bach’s “Erkenne mich, mein Hüter“.

"[4] Cash Box called it a "gorgeous, haunting, highly lyrical track" and said that the "soft vocal performance is heightened by sweet string section.

"[8] The tune is based on the melody of the hymn "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded" (German: "O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden," text by Paul Gerhardt).

The well-known hymn is itself a reworking of an earlier secular song, "Mein G'müt ist mir verwirret," composed by Hans Leo Hassler.

[11] In his surprise appearance at the 2022 Newport Folk Festival, Simon introduced Rhiannon Giddens to sing the song, with lyrics adjusted to include the lines, "We didn't come here on the Mayflower / We came on a ship in a blood red moon".

[12] The song has been covered by many artists, notably Rhiannon Giddens, Willie Nelson, Eva Cassidy, Ann Wilson, Shawn Colvin, Allen Toussaint, Gretchen Peters, Indigo Girls, Starland Vocal Band, Dave Matthews, Trey Anastasio, John Boutté, Keane, Glen Phillips, Jerry Douglas, Kurt Elling, Curtis Stigers, Darrell Scott, Storyhill, and Stacey Kent.