 " Just Like Tom Thumb 's Blues " has six verses but no chorus . The song 's lyrics describe a nightmare vision of the narrator 's experience in Juarez , Mexico , in which he encounters sickness , despair , prostitutes , saints , shady women , corrupt authorities , alcohol and drugs , before finally deciding to return to New York City . The lyrics incorporate literary references to Malcolm Lowry 's Under the Volcano , Edgar Allan Poe 's " The Murders in the Rue Morgue " and Jack Kerouac 's Desolation Angels , while the song 's title references Arthur Rimbaud 's " My Bohemian Life ( Fantasy ) " . William Ruhlmann of the Allmusic website has described the song as a comic tour de force and music journalist Toby Creswell included it on his list of the 1001 greatest songs of all time . Music critic Dave Marsh ranked the live version of " Just Like Tom Thumb 's Blues " from Liverpool that was released as the B @-@ side of " I Want You " as the number 243 greatest single of all time . 
