Best and worst sleeve notes?

Assuming the average minimum size of each member's personal music library is about 1000 titles , I guess everyone of us has - over the years - read over a thousand of those 2000+word essays that accompany the CDs as sleeve notes. I am curious to know which are the best (and worst) sleeve essays you have had the pleasure of reading?

For me, I appreciate the various extended essays and synopses provided by Decca in the libretto booklets for Dame Joan Sutherland's recordings of the bel canto opera repertoire. These feature detailed historical background info on the operas and also include interesting portraits and engravings of the various 19th century opera artistes who were involved in the premieres of the operas. These booklets are a pleasure to read and re-read again.

Although Previn's Telarc-Strauss tone poem recordings aren't my favourites, I found the brief sleeve notes illuminating. These contain musical-note quotations from the poems and relevant explanations of their significance. IMHO, all CD sleeve notes should be presented like this.

The worst sleeve essay? That has to be the one that accompanied the first CD release of Otto Klemperer's "Fidelio". My summary of what the syncophantic author was droning on about:

- who cares if this opera isn't considered the greatest by the standards of the greatest opera composers? It's written by Beethoven, so, it is great!
- who cares if the villians in this opera are comical caricatures? This opera is written by Beethoven, so, it is great!

- when you play this recording (by Klemperer), you can hear the greatness of this opera!

Great idiot, that writer.



SS