The talented musician, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the team achieved a global success with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball died calmly 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 Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
Following catching a lung infection and developing sepsis, 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 fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is scheduled for release in the coming year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a few days ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as next year was all set to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the fact that he listened to the finished record and felt 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 extremely pleased of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense part of my life and for the songs you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a partnership with someone is different from joining a band, the bond is very tight," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We experienced so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable moments as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Early Life
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He was raised in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from his birth name to his adopted name, together with his sibling his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in the late 70s, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The duo were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, bent over his synthesizer, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they achieved a unique creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on a television program a popular series, and began to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, shifting millions of units globally. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 1980s.
The song was also featured on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at number two in the following year.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which might seem like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches allowed we could purchase newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, 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 party-filled existence, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a follow-up classic album - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released one more LP, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on other projects.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, featuring the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined dance music with ambient pop over a long-lasting partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting record Cruelty Without Beauty.
After a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
However, they remained active, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball recently characterized the duo's new album as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He added that his time in hospital had influenced the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was in and out of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we had in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is scheduled for launch in Spring 2026.
