I'm not a huge fan of the band on the Columbia records, though Monk and Monkishness are still there in full force. I'd say the records themselves, and the compositions, are certainly fine.
I like "roughness" and, to a degree, have felt that the Columbia production did not serve that aspect of his music. But it's also true that most composers do want their work to be polished, so I may be in the perceptual minority here.