“I just wish in the end he’d told the press the truth”: Forgotten Van Halen singer Mitch Malloy shares Eddie Van Halen regret as he posts unreleased demo track
When Van Halen parted ways with frontman Sammy Hagar in 1996, and before Gary Cherone joined the fold the same year, the band auditioned a number of singers, including Mitch Malloy.
During that interim period, Malloy demoed a song with the band titled It’s The Right Time, which has now been posted to Malloy’s YouTube channel, with a caption which, in his view, sets the record straight on the timeline of Van Halen’s official singers.
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He explains that he was actually Van Halen’s official third singer, and that he had asked the band not to disclose this, and to instead go with the narrative that Gary Cherone was their third frontman.
“Van Halen’s third singer was actually Mitch Malloy in 1996,” the caption reads. “Mitch asked the band to not disclose this. It was later discovered and incorrectly documented and after more than a decade of silence forced Mitch into correcting the record.
“This song was written by Mitch Malloy and Eddie Van Halen. It’s Mitch Malloy in Van Halen. It’s not an official release and it’s not for sale. It’s a gift from Mitch.”
As the story goes, Malloy opted not to join Van Halen as he was dissatisfied with the band’s creative direction, which led to the recruitment of Gary Cherone instead.
But in the comments of the video, Malloy expresses that he’s not happy that he’s often forgotten from the Van Halen history books, writing: I should be able to benefit from the art I worked my entire life to perfect.
“What person doesn’t get promoted for their accomplishments? In America that’s how it’s supposed to work. Instead of being celebrated as Van Halen’s first choice to replace Sam I’m left with sticking up for myself. It’s not right and it’s not fair to me. And I’m kinda pissed.
“Anyone else would not have handled this as well as I have. Ed told me that last time I saw him. I just wish in the end he’d told the press the truth. So I don’t have to. I wish no one knew to be honest. But since they do they should be able to hear the result. You’re welcome.”
Listen to It’s The Right Time – which is accompanied by photos of Malloy, some with Van Halen – below.
The post “I just wish in the end he’d told the press the truth”: Forgotten Van Halen singer Mitch Malloy shares Eddie Van Halen regret as he posts unreleased demo track appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.
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