The talented musician, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside singer Marc Almond, the duo scored a worldwide hit with their version of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record their initial full-length release is considered a seminal work of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the pioneering techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.
Ball died peacefully in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after performing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.
Health Struggles
At that performance, Ball appeared in a mobility chair, as he had for the previous couple of years, following a period of health issues.
"I managed to damage myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured spinal bones in my back and fractured about five ribs and broke my arm."
After contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was placed in an induced coma and remained in the hospital for seven months.
However, he had been in "high spirits mentally" over the summer, as he worked on a fresh record with Almond, titled 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," stated the singer in a heartfelt message.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was completely planned to be such an uplifting time for him, and I take some solace from the fact that he heard the completed album and believed that it was a masterpiece."
Tributes
Almond described his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant musical genius", adding: "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 aspect of my existence and for the music you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."
Richard Norris from The Grid, shared his condolences, recalling Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".
"Forming a duo with someone is different from being in a band, the bond is incredibly close," he continued.
"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, extraordinary, memorable experiences as a team. Thank you, Dave."
Formative Years
Born into a one-parent family in the city of Chester in 1959, Ball was given up for adoption when he was 18 months old.
He grew up in Blackpool with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from Paul to his adopted name, together with his younger sister Susan, who was also adopted.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning art. Fuelled by a mutual passion of Northern Soul, they formed Soft Cell the same year, and quickly recorded an EP.
Musical Partnership
The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the reserved musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant showman, all sparkle and eye-liner; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had developed a fascination with electronic instruments after watching Kraftwerk appear on a television science show Tomorrow's World, and started to marry dark electronica to the catchy tunes Almond was writing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second most popular song of the early 80s, shifting 21 million copies globally. Together with hits by other artists, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to cleared the way for the synth-pop sound of the 80s.
The song was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which spawned two additional high-charting hits: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They followed the album up with the separate release, Torch, which reached at number two in 1982.
Professional Journey
Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which might seem like a beauty queen," Ball not long ago told with a music magazine.
But it also presented problems. "Sudden riches meant we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of media interviews and television shows, Ball explained.
"I realize 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 growing distant, but they managed to create a second classic album - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They released another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before ending the band to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond went on to have a successful individual path, featuring the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who combined acid house with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in the early 2000s, releasing the Top 40 album Cruelty Without Beauty.
Following another break, they returned in recent years, releasing the original singles Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before performing what was supposed to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
However, they remained together, creating their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic Covid lockdown.
Ball lately characterized the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the NYC nightlife they frequented while making their initial records.
He added that his period in medical care had shaped the group's music.
"I experienced strange recollections when I was coming and going of hospital because I was on morphine," he explained to a music magazine.
"Our latest tracks are a electronic representation of the noises in my mind from that time.
"Simultaneously, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The final mixes were finished only days before Ball died. It is scheduled for release in the spring of 2026.
