The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is considered a classic of electronic music.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly in his sleep at his residence in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that show, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of health issues.
"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" over the warmer months, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and so happy with the latest project that we literally finished only a few days ago," said the singer in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year 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 felt that it was a great piece of work."
Tributes
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "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 significant part of my life and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "steadfast support".
"Being in 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 experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in Blackpool with his new family his caregivers, who altered his given name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both learning fine arts. Inspired by a shared love of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an distinctive pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, bent over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on a television program a popular series, and began to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.
Their signature song became the UK's second biggest-selling song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.
The song was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Professional Journey
Fame had its benefits. "I loved being able to afford my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in 2001, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the large venue on 30 September, that year.
However, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife 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 coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the experiences me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
