As Gary Hoey Celebrates His New Christmas Album, He Opens Up About Recent Health Scare - Interview

Gary Hoey's latest Christmas album, Christmas Time Is Here, celebrates 30 years of his Ho Ho Hoey series and on Thursday (Dec. 18), he joined Loudwire Nights to celebrate the new record.

Listen to the full conversation in the player near the end of this article.

"I did this 30 years ago, my mother kept saying to me, 'You need to make a nice Christmas album,' and my mom was a big inspiration," Hoey shared with host Chuck Armstrong.

"But I said, 'Mom, there's so many nice Christmas records out there. I'd rather do something rock and roll.'"

And that's what Hoey did. His first song was "The 12 Days of Christmas" and the rest is holiday history.

"I grew up loving Black Sabbath and heavy music so I said, if I can combine good and evil, this is going to work," he explained about bridging Christmas music with rock and roll.

"All my friends that hated Christmas music, they're like, 'Dude, you made me like Christmas music again.'"

Gary Hoey's Health Scare + How He's Feeling Today

Along with celebrating the new album, Hoey also opened up about a recent health scare he had around Thanksgiving.

"On Thanksgiving morning, I was talking to my sister on the phone and all of a sudden I couldn't speak," he recalled.

"I just was trying to talk and then I get slurry speech and I walked in the kitchen. My wife said, 'Your face is drooping,' and then I felt my right leg go numb."

Hoey knew something was wrong so he immediately sat down so that he wouldn't fall to the ground.

"My son was a rock," he said.

"He said, 'Dad, you'll be okay. I'm calling 911.' And he was really calm through the whole thing and he took real good care of me."

READ MORE: Charlie Sheen Interview — A Look Back at a Rock and Roll Life

Though Hoey had to postpone a couple of live shows, he was back on the stage in a few days.

"I felt pretty good," he said.

"I had a stool on stage, I sat down a little bit. My energy is not 100-percent, but I'm feeling good."

What Else Did Gary Hoey Discuss on Loudwire Nights?

• What it was like auditioning for Ozzy Osbourne's band in the '80s: "I owe my whole career to Ozzy because when I was a kid playing in my garage...it became the DNA of who I am as a guitarist. And to have his music influence me and then to meet him and perform with him based on a cassette tape that I sent in, he heard something in that cassette."
• What it was like producing Lita Ford's upcoming record: "I've loved her since the '80s ... When I met her, I just thought she was the coolest person. She's such a sweetheart ... It was a crazy chemistry and her and my wife get along tremendously and she's like a soul sister to me."
• What else is on the horizon in 2026: "We're ramping up for a big year. I'm already working on more new music. I had a six-year gap between albums...so I'm feeling now like I want to get a new record out in the new year."

Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below

Gary Hoey joined Loudwire Nights on Thursday, Dec. 18; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand.