The talented musician, a key member of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is regarded as a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of health issues.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about five ribs and fractured my arm."
Following catching pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was put in an induced coma and remained in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the latest project that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he added.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball said.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the wayward, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful individual path, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with ambient pop over a enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they reappeared in recent years, 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 September 30, 2018.
Yet, they stayed together, recording their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a homage to the New York club scene they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
