The talented musician, one half of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the pair achieved a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' Tainted Love in 1984, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of electronic music.
He later founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who achieved popular acclaim with their 1994 single Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away peacefully 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.
Recent Health Challenges
During that show, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke spinal bones in my spine and fractured about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and suffering from sepsis, he was put in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the warmer months, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled Danceteria, which is set for publication next year.
"He was focused and very pleased with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as 2026 was completely planned to be such an uplifting year for him, and I take some solace 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 musical genius", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Thank you Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the music you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without your influence."
His Grid bandmate from The Grid, shared his condolences, remembering Ball's "endless laughter" and "steadfast support".
"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from being in a group, the connection is incredibly close," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many remarkable, incredible, memorable experiences as a team. Many thanks, Dave."
Early Life
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who altered his first name from Paul to David, alongside his sibling his sister, who was similarly welcomed.
He encountered Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying art. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all glitter and makeup; but they attained a unique musical alchemy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and started to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
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 Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it helped paved the path for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two additional top five singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the record up with the stand-alone single, 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 exploring, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.
But it also presented problems. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford substances to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and television shows, Ball explained.
"I know that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a valid cause, because it works for so many musicians."
During the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to create a second classic album - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another album, 1984's This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the group to concentrate on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a prosperous solo career, 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 enduring collaboration.
Later Work and Comebacks
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, releasing the Top 40 record Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following a further hiatus, they returned in 2018, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a farewell show at the large venue on September 30, that year.
However, they remained together, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball lately characterized the band's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while recording their first two albums.
He noted that his period in hospital 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 explained to a music magazine.
"The new songs are a digital reflection of the sounds in my mind from those days.
"Simultaneously, it's about the experiences we got up to in the 1980s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
