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Dave Ball, a key member of the pioneering 1980s synth-pop duo Soft Cell, has passed away at the age of 66.

Together with vocalist 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 debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is regarded as a classic of electronic music.

He subsequently formed the innovative techno group The Grid, who secured chart success with 1994's the hit Swamp Thing.

Ball died calmly in his rest at his home in London on October 22, just weeks after playing a featured performance with Soft Cell at the Rewind music event in Henley-on-Thames.

Recent Health Challenges

During that performance, Ball performed in a wheelchair, as he had for the last two years, after a period of ill-health.

"I ended up damage myself significantly," he stated in 2023. "I broke lower vertebrae in my back and fractured about five ribs and fractured my wrist."

Following contracting pneumonia and suffering from blood poisoning, he was placed in an medically-induced sleep and stayed in hospital for half a year.

However, he had been in "a great place mentally" during the summer, 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 latest project that we literally completed only a short time ago," stated the vocalist in a heartfelt message.

"It's so sad as next year was completely planned to be such an positive year for him, and I find comfort from the knowledge that he listened to the completed album and believed that it was a great piece of work."

Heartfelt Messages

Almond referred to his collaborator as "a wonderfully brilliant creative mastermind", adding: "He was the heart and soul of Soft Cell and I'm very proud of our body of work.

"Thank you Dave for being an significant aspect of my life and for the songs you gave me. I wouldn't be where I am without your influence."

His Grid bandmate from The Grid, also paid tribute, remembering Ball's "constant humor" and "unwavering friendship".

"Forming a duo with someone is distinct from joining a group, the connection is incredibly close," he continued.

"That's how it was with us. We went through so many extraordinary, incredible, memorable moments together. Thank you, Dave."

Formative Years

Brought into the world into a single-parent household in Chester in the late 50s, Ball was put up for adoption when he was 18 months old.

He was raised in the seaside town with adoptive parents his caregivers, who changed his first name from his birth name to David, alongside his sibling Susan, who was similarly welcomed.

He met Almond at an art college in the late 70s, where they were both studying fine arts. Fuelled by a shared love of Northern Soul, they established Soft Cell the very year, and quickly produced an EP.

Musical Partnership

The pair were an unusual pairing: Ball was the quiet musician, hunched over his keyboard, while Almond was a flamboyant performer, all glitter and eye-liner; but they attained a rare musical alchemy.

Ball had developed a interest with electronic instruments after viewing the band Kraftwerk perform on BBC program Tomorrow's World, and began to combine dark electronica to the soaring melodies Almond was writing.

Their signature song became the UK's second most popular single of 1981, selling 21 million copies globally. Alongside hits by other artists, contemporary bands and Ultravox, it contributed to cleared the way for the electronic music style of the 80s.

The track was also included on their first album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned two further high-charting singles: Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye.

They continued the album up with the stand-alone single, Torch, which reached at the second position in the following year.

Professional Journey

Success had its benefits. "I enjoyed being able to purchase my initial property, having money and travelling, which makes me sound like a beauty queen," Ball recently shared with a publication.

But it also presented challenges. "Newfound wealth allowed we could afford newfound drugs to relieve the monotony" of press appearances and TV performances, Ball said.

"I know that's a cliché, but it's a cliché for a valid cause, because it applies for so many bands."

Amidst the party-filled existence, the duo were also drifting apart, but they succeeded to produce a second classic album - the wayward, edgy and aptly-titled The Art Of Falling Apart.

They put out another album, their 1984 release This Last Night In Sodom, before dissolving the group to focus on other projects.

Almond went on to have a successful solo career, including the top 10 hit Something's Got A Hold Of My Heart; while Ball formed The Grid, who mixed dance music with melodic sounds over a long-lasting collaboration.

Reunions and Final Projects

Soft Cell reunited in the early 2000s, releasing the charting album Cruelty Without Beauty.

Following another break, they returned in recent years, issuing the new tracks Northern Lights and Guilty (Cos I Say You Are) before staging what was intended to be a final performance at the O2 Arena on September 30, that year.

However, they stayed active, creating their latest project, Happiness Not Included, during the 2020 restrictions.

Ball recently described the duo's new album as a homage to the New York club scene they visited while making their first two albums.

He noted that his period in medical care had shaped the group's music.

"I experienced unusual memories when I was coming and going of the hospital because I was on morphine," he told a music magazine.

"Our latest tracks are a digital reflection 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 last versions were finished only days before Ball died. It is due for release in Spring 2026.