The talented musician, one half of the pioneering 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their debut album their initial full-length release is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the innovative electronic act The Grid, who achieved chart success with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his sleep at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, following a period of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself quite a bit," he stated in 2023. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After catching a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and remained in hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" during the summer, as he worked on a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is scheduled for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we actually completed only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he heard the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my existence and for the songs you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after watching the band Kraftwerk appear on a television science show a popular series, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, shifting millions of copies globally. Alongside successful tracks by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and exploring, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a publication.
But it also caused challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball said.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting partnership.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further break, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they frequented while making their first two albums.
He added that his time in hospital had influenced the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a publication.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my head from that time.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
