The talented musician, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Together with vocalist Marc Almond, the pair scored 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 later founded the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully in his rest at his home in London on October 22, only a short time after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames.
Recent Health Challenges
At that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my wrist."
After catching pneumonia and developing sepsis, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "a great place emotionally" over the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", stating: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm extremely pleased of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I wouldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.
"That was the case with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at Leeds Polytechnic in 1977, where they were both learning art. Inspired by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an extended play.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.
Ball had developed a interest with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the UK's second most popular single of the early 80s, selling millions of copies worldwide. Alongside successful tracks by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it helped paved the way for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The track was also included on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at the second position in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I loved being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Newfound wealth meant we could purchase substances to alleviate the boredom" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a good reason, because it works for so many musicians."
Amidst the hedonistic lifestyle, the duo were also growing distant, but they managed to produce a second memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out one more album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a prosperous solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a enduring collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, producing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
After another break, they returned in 2018, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on September 30, that year.
Yet, they remained active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a homage to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He noted that his time in hospital had shaped the group's music.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection of the noises in my head from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball passed away. It is due for release in the spring of 2026.
