Dave Ball, a key member of the innovative 1980s electronic music band Soft Cell, has died at the age of 66.
Alongside vocalist Marc Almond, the duo scored a global success with their cover of Gloria Jones' the classic track Tainted Love in the mid-80s, and their first record Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a seminal work of synth-pop.
He subsequently founded the pioneering electronic act The Grid, who secured popular acclaim with 1994's Swamp Thing.
Ball passed away calmly in his rest at his home in London on Wednesday 22 October, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in the Thames-side town.
Recent Health Challenges
During that performance, Ball appeared in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, following a spate of ill-health.
"I managed to injure myself significantly," he commented in a recent interview. "I fractured lower vertebrae in my spine and cracked about multiple ribs and fractured my arm."
Following contracting a lung infection and developing blood poisoning, he was put in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.
However, he had been in "high spirits emotionally" during the summer, as he was developing a new album with Almond, called Danceteria, which is set for publication in the coming year.
"He was focused and so happy with the new album that we actually finished only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a tribute.
"It's truly heartbreaking as next year was all set to be such an positive time for him, and I take some solace from the knowledge that he listened to the finished record and believed that it was a great piece of work."
Heartfelt Messages
Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", stating: "He was the core essence of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.
"Many thanks Dave for being an immense aspect of my existence and for the songs you gave me. I couldn't be where I am without you."
Richard Norris from The Grid, also paid tribute, recalling Ball's "endless laughter" and "unwavering friendship".
"Being in a partnership with someone is distinct from being in a band, the bond is very tight," he added.
"That's how it was with us. We experienced so many remarkable, extraordinary, life-affirming experiences together. Many thanks, Dave."
Formative Years
Brought into the world into a one-parent family in Chester in 1959, Ball was put up for adoption when he was a year and a half old.
He grew up in the seaside town with adoptive parents Donald and Brenda Ball, who altered his first name from Paul to David, together with his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.
He met Almond at an art college in 1977, where they were both learning fine arts. Fuelled by a mutual passion of a music genre, they established Soft Cell the very year, and promptly produced an EP.
Creative Collaboration
The pair were an distinctive combination: Ball was the reserved technician, hunched over his synthesizer, while Almond was a charismatic showman, all sparkle and makeup; but they achieved a rare creative synergy.
Ball had cultivated a interest with synthesizers after viewing Kraftwerk perform on BBC science show a popular series, and started to marry moody electronic sounds to the soaring melodies Almond was composing.
Tainted Love became the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling single of 1981, shifting 21 million units globally. Together with hits by Gary Numan, contemporary bands and electronic acts, it contributed to paved the way for the electronic music style of the 1980s.
The track was also included on their first album, their initial LP, which produced two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.
They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which peaked at number two in 1982.
Career Highlights
Success had its upsides. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and exploring, which makes me sound like a Miss World," Ball not long ago shared with a music magazine.
But it also caused problems. "Sudden riches meant we could purchase newfound drugs to alleviate the boredom" of media interviews and TV performances, Ball said.
"I realize that's a common saying, but it's a truism for a good reason, because it applies for so many bands."
During the party-filled existence, the pair were also growing distant, but they managed to create a second memorable record - the unconventional, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.
They put out another LP, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on individual endeavors.
Almond proceeded to have a successful solo career, including the chart-topping single Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball created The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a enduring partnership.
Reunions and Final Projects
Soft Cell came back together in 2001, producing the charting album 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 intended to be a final performance at the large venue on 30 September, 2018.
Yet, they remained active, recording their fifth album, Happiness Not Included, during the pandemic restrictions.
Ball recently described the band's upcoming release as a tribute to the New York club scene they visited while making their initial records.
He noted that his period in medical care had shaped the band's sound.
"I had unusual memories when I was in and out of 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.
"In parallel, it's about the times me and Marc got up to in the 80s."
The last versions were completed only a short time before Ball died. It is scheduled for launch in the spring of 2026.
