The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his sleep at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I ended up damage myself quite a bit," he commented in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and broke my wrist."
After contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually completed only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from joining a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of 1981, selling millions of copies worldwide. Together with successful tracks by Gary Numan, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which peaked at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed active, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He added that his time in medical care had influenced the band's sound.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc had in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
