Found the thread "Lyr. Req. "Coot from Tennessee" (should be Coon From Tennessee) which has the words from sheet music, ""I'm Gonna Live Anyhow Till I Die," 1891, Shepherd N. Edmonds. The song also entered Black tradition, usually with the title given above.

The "Girl From Tennessee" is derived from that. See comments on Poole version in this thread.
"I know my kind of life ain't very high" is where "live on the highways" came from.

Coot From Tennessee