William Turk
William Turk (1866 – 1911) was an American ragtime pianist. He was reputably so obese that he could not put his left hand in front of his stomach, so he invented techniques playing with his left hand to the side. Eubie Blake claimed to have heard Turk playing in 1896 in Baltimore, in a style then known as "sixteen", which Blake said was  later renamed "boogie woogie". Blake also stated that Turk "had a left hand like God". References

1866 births
1911 deaths
19th-century African-American musicians
20th-century African-American musicians
African-American jazz pianists
American male jazz musicians
American male pianists
Boogie-woogie pianists
Ragtime pianists