The talented musician, one half of the groundbreaking 1980s electronic music duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.
Together with singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a classic of synth-pop.
He subsequently formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who achieved chart success with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away 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 music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the previous couple of years, after a period of ill-health.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in a recent interview. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my wrist."
After catching pneumonia and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for seven months.
Nevertheless, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the warmer months, as he worked on a new album with Almond, titled the upcoming Danceteria, which is set for release next year.
"He was concentrated and very pleased with the new album that we literally finished only a short time ago," said the vocalist in a heartfelt message.
"It's so sad as 2026 was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he heard the finished record and felt that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his bandmate as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our legacy.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the music you created with me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Being in a duo with someone is distinct from being in a band, the connection is very tight," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a single-parent household in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months of age.
He grew up in the seaside town with his new family Donald and Brenda Ball, who changed his first name from Paul to David, together with his younger sister his sister, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of a music genre, they formed Soft Cell the very year, and promptly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The duo were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic performer, all sparkle and makeup; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a fascination with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, selling millions of copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, Human League and Ultravox, it helped paved the path for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The track was also featured on their full-length debut, their initial LP, which spawned two further top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at the second position in 1982.
Career Highlights
Fame had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to afford my initial property, having financial security and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a music magazine.
But it also presented challenges. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase substances to alleviate the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it works for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they managed to produce a follow-up memorable record - the wayward, tense and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous 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 melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another hiatus, they reappeared in 2018, issuing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was supposed to be a farewell show at the O2 Arena on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately described the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He added that his time in hospital had shaped the band's sound.
"I had strange recollections when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on pain medication," he told a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 1980s."
The final mixes were completed only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in Spring 2026.
