The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the team scored a global success with their cover 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 later founded the innovative electronic act The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his residence in London on Wednesday 22 October, only a short time after playing a headline show with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in the Thames-side town.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball performed in a mobility chair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about five ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for half a year.
Nevertheless, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the warmer months, as he was developing a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for release next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally completed only a few days ago," stated the singer in a tribute.
"It's so sad as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "an exceptionally talented creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a group, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was a year and a half of age.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his given name from Paul to his adopted name, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the same year, and promptly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual combination: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they attained a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after watching Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show Tomorrow's World, and started to combine moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling single of the early 80s, selling 21 million copies worldwide. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further top five hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my first home, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball recently told with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize that's a cliché, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the pair were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a follow-up classic album - the unconventional, edgy and fittingly named The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, producing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in recent years, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He added that his time in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I experienced unusual memories when I was in and out of hospital because I was on pain medication," he told 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 died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
