Rhino Deluxe CD reissues

While opinions will vary the Deluxe reissues have their good and bad points.

To begin, the early albums are improved sonically - Seventeen Seconds especially so.

On original cds of The Top, Bananafishbones is mastered at the wrong speed.

Note that some pressings of the Deluxe The Top have the first second of Shake Dog Shake missing.

Japanese Whispers on CD is bad. There doesn't seem to be a good pressing. See the Steve Hoffman forums for opinions about the various editions.

As each Deluxe set includes bonus recordings one can hardly steer you away from those.

The content of the Curiosity cassette is finally presented on CD, various home recordings, rehearsals and studio out-takes included can help a fan understand the development of songs from sketches to their final versions.

Are they essential? Well, no. They are a mixed bag of crude tape recordings and studio material. Some editions present many instrumental demos, others none.
Personally, I skip the home recordings, rehearsals and the audience recordings of live performances.
Where the individual sees value is their own preference though I have enjoyed some of the bonus content immensely.

As many of the Deluxes have themselves been repressed finding a release at a favourable price point may be quite easy. If you have to own a specific edition, well, that's your prerogative and your dollar.

I see no intrinsic value in owning first editions especially if they are digipaks.