IN the 22 years he served in the United States Air Force, Linval Thomas lived in different countries and soaked up diverse cultures.

All that time, he yearned to make music in his native Jamaica. Two years ago, he left his home in Belleville, Illinois and moved to Kingston for recording sessions that resulted in Call Me, his second album.

He will launch the 11-track set June 16 at Redbones Blues Cafe in St Andrew.

“It’s always been a passion of mine to do music in Jamaica. Providence intervened and it’s now a reality…it goes beyond words,” Thomas told the Sunday Observer.

Last year, Thomas released five songs in Jamaica: Reggae Jamaica, Mother, Bilar, I-Shence and a cover of the Righteous Brothers’ You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling.

“They got played on Jamaican radio. That’s all the validation I needed,” said Thomas, who is in his early 60s.

Reggae Jamaica, Mother and I-Shence are on Call Me, so too Ooh Ooh Girl, a lovers rock number he recorded almost 10 years ago.

Some experienced musicians including Winston ‘Bo Pee’ Bowen and keyboardist Paul ‘Wrong Move’ Crosdale worked on the album which was recorded at Harry J and Tuff Gong studios in Kingston.

Linval Thomas hails from Fletcher’s Land in west Kingston. He recorded his first song, Bachelor Boy, for producer Prince Buster in the late 1960s while a student at Camperdown High School.

He migrated to the United States in 1971 and joined the Air Force shortly after, leaving the service in 1993 with the rank of staff sergeant.

Settling in Belleville post-Air Force, Thomas became a part of that Midwest city’s small reggae scene. In 2011, he released Time, his first album, which was followed by the six-track EP, Ooh, Ooh Girl.

Thomas believes living in Jamaica and working with seasoned musicians put a edge on his sound that was missing from previous recordings.

“Things really worked out beautifully, yuh know. Nothing beats fulfilling a dream,” he said.