Does the name Mitch Malloy ring a bell? If you said "no," you're not alone.

Mitch, though, to his credit is an award-winning singer and songwriter who released two albums for RCA Records back in the 1990s. But, perhaps, what he is most famous for is being an interesting footnote in the history of Van Halen.

After Sammy Hagar quit the band (or was fired, depending on which camp you believe), the band held a number of auditions for their next lead vocalist/lyricist. Rumors throughout the years indicate the band did sessions with everyone from David Coverdale (of Whitesnake and Deep Purple fame) and female vocalist Sass Jordan before finally settling on Mitch Malloy as their new singer.

Mitch even went so far as to record a number of tracks with Van Halen. His versions of "Panama," "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love," "Why Can't This Be Love," "Don't Tell Me (What Love Can Do)," and "Jump" have previously leaked online.

However, for the first time, Van Halen fans can take a listen to an original track that Malloy wrote with the group.

"It's The Right Time" is now available for fans to listen to online. Hardcore Van Halen fans will recognize the music. The song was eventually re-recorded with new lyrics and a new vocalist, Gary Cherone, for the much-maligned "Van Halen III" era.

By that time, the song had been re-titled "That's Why I Love You."

Although Mitch was made an official member of Van Halen, shortly afterward the group famously reunited with David Lee Roth at the MTV Video Music Awards. Mitch says he knew nothing of the reunion until he saw it on television himself.

Following the excitement around a potential Roth reunion, Mitch quit Van Halen.

“I was, like, ‘What?’ My jaw just dropped,” Malloy said. “Then, I was just like: ‘What are they doing? Why is Dave with them? This is not good for me.’ It just hit me at that time now the whole world thought that Dave was back in the band – and wanted Dave back in the band, including me. I mean, I grew up on Van Halen with Dave in it."

Of course, the DLR reunion wouldn't happen. Not then, anyway. After Mitch quit, Van Halen hired Cherone as their third vocalist and would spiral out of control for a number of years.

The terrible reviews for "Van Halen III" from both critics and fans, record-low ticket sales for the tour that followed, coupled with Eddie's personal battles with booze, health scares and his crumbling marriage put the band on hiatus for quite some time.

The "new" song, we think is really pretty good. It's a very uplifting track and Malloy really gets to show off what he would have brought to the Van Halen fold should the stars have aligned in another way.

More From KKTX FM