The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team scored a worldwide hit with their version 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 formed the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my wrist."
Following catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was concentrated and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my life and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from being in a group, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his given name from his birth name to his adopted name, alongside his younger sister his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing Kraftwerk appear on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling 21 million units worldwide. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my first home, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a publication.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to create a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate 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 melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, that year.
Yet, they remained together, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the sounds in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences me and Marc had in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball passed away. It is due for launch in the spring of 2026.
