diff --git a/lib/mb_match.py b/lib/mb_match.py
index 2be80e4..faa4454 100644
--- a/lib/mb_match.py
+++ b/lib/mb_match.py
@@ -283,7 +283,11 @@ def _best_release(doc: dict) -> dict:
         clean = 0 if _is_clean_studio_album(rg) else 1
         status_ok = 0 if str(r.get("status", "")).lower() == "official" else 1
         date = str(r.get("date", "") or "9999")
-        return (clean, status_ok, date)
+        # Official FIRST, then prefer a clean studio album: this still surfaces
+        # the studio album over an (official) live/comp album for the display
+        # album/year, but never lets an UNofficial bootleg album outrank an
+        # official single/EP/comp — which `(clean, status_ok, …)` would.
+        return (status_ok, clean, date)
 
     return sorted(releases, key=sort_key)[0]
 
diff --git a/tests/test_mb_match.py b/tests/test_mb_match.py
index 9af0abb..ed793a1 100644
--- a/tests/test_mb_match.py
+++ b/tests/test_mb_match.py
@@ -202,6 +202,29 @@ def test_parse_recording_doc_normalizes():
     assert c["mb_score"] == 98
 
 
+def test_best_release_prefers_official_single_over_unofficial_album():
+    """An OFFICIAL single/EP must outrank an UNofficial bootleg album for the
+    canonical album/year: official comes before the studio-album preference, so
+    a single-only song is never seeded from a bootleg. (`(clean, status_ok, …)`
+    would wrongly pick the bootleg.)"""
+    doc = {
+        "id": "rec-x", "title": "One-Off", "score": 90,
+        "artist-credit": [
+            {"name": "A", "joinphrase": "",
+             "artist": {"id": "a", "name": "A", "sort-name": "A"}}],
+        "releases": [
+            {"id": "rel-boot", "title": "Boot LP", "status": "Bootleg",
+             "date": "1990-01-01", "release-group": {"primary-type": "Album"}},
+            {"id": "rel-single", "title": "The Single", "status": "Official",
+             "date": "1988-01-01", "release-group": {"primary-type": "Single"}},
+        ],
+    }
+    c = m.parse_recording_doc(doc)
+    assert c["release_id"] == "rel-single"
+    assert c["album"] == "The Single"
+    assert c["studio"] is False   # a Single isn't a clean studio ALBUM
+
+
 def test_parse_recording_doc_joined_artist_credit():
     doc = dict(MB_DOC)
     doc["artist-credit"] = [