Perelman might work. There seems to have been a certain darkness to Perelman, and I think there's a darkness to Desmond as well, although maybe (and this is maybe Too Much Math For R&B), Perelman's darkness seems to have been about the world at large (there's a latter-day TV interview with him somewhere on YouTube that is almost uncomfortable in that regard), and Desmond's seems to, maybe, have been more about himself. Point just being that maybe a lot of the sentiment for and against Desmond's playing is because of it's "lightness", like it's all happysunshinewhimsy, but the more I listen to it, the less I think that that's what it is, although it sure as hell sounds like that on the surface. Sounds more to me like a man who knew more than he let on, and who also knew that if he ever did let on, he would be uncomfortable with whoever/whatever embraced him in the aftermath, if in fact anybody would. Hardly a recipe for "happiness". And let's not yet forget Joe Dodge: http://jazzprofiles.blogspot.com/2009/08/joe-dodge-drummer-as-time-keeper.html