Across-the-Board Musician : Jazz artist Leon (Ndugu) Chancler says his band allows him to express his liking for the entire spectrum of contemporary music.

Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Michael Jackson, Santana, Weather Report, the Crusaders--drummer Leon (Ndugu) Chancler has played or recorded with them all.

But when Chancler leads his own band, as he does Friday and Saturday at LeCafe in Sherman Oaks, he plays not only drums but vibes and percussion as well, exhibiting an aspect of his artistry that he rarely showed with these giants.

“In my band, I have the luxury of not just being a drummer, so that I can express the improvisational, melodic side of me,” said Chancler, 40, from his home in Los Angeles.

Chancler, who long ago adopted the name “Ndugu,” is indeed a boisterous drummer, but he has long invested a variety of musical colors in his playing. As Chuck Braman wrote in the New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, Chancler’s “execution . . . of rhythms . . . is unusually loose and imaginative.” Still, the drummer feels that he gets pigeonholed by artists and audiences alike.

“Most people assume that because I play the drums the way I do, that’s the only side to me,” said Chancler, who has written many compositions in both the jazz and pop areas. “But I have a side that’s soft, mellow and warm, that likes subtle colors. That often doesn’t get to come out because the nature of the drums is aggressive and controlling. But sometimes a portion of that softness comes through in composition and in a solo, where you can start to feel the sensitivity, the high regard for melody and texture.”

Dale Jaffe, co-owner of Le Cafe and the man who books its Room Upstairs, hires Chancler because he expresses a wealth of aspects. “Ndugu is one of the most musical performers I’ve heard,” he said.

Chancler formed his band, which highlights saxophonist Kenny Flood and bassist Reggie Hamilton, about six years ago not only to expose his compositional and melodic bents, but also to fully express his appreciation for the entire spectrum of contemporary music.

“This band is a recapitulation of my career as a musician in terms of directions,” he said. “We play contemporary jazz / funk, straight-ahead be-bop, Brazilian jazz, Latin and some free things too.”

Asked why he likes to cover so many styles, Chancler said an across-the-board presentation was a good depiction of who he is as a musician. “I’m a jazz musician,” he said. “To me, that means being able to express yourself, improvising and so forth.”

“But the rhythmic setting for jazz is not always one type of setting. A lot of people think jazz started and stopped with be-bop,” he went on, referring to the classic jazz form that was in vogue from the mid-’40s through the mid-’50s. “What I have done in my career is bring a jazz approach to everything I’ve played, be it commercial R&B;, pop, Latin or just traditional jazz. I’ve had success in all those areas, and with that in mind, all those areas are a vital part of me.

“I like music,” concluded the musician, whose latest projects include producing a standards album for Sheena Easton, and performing on a new album by his longtime colleague and friend, Patrice Rushen. “All of it is valid if you respect it, then put your heart and soul into it.”

There are areas of music where Chancler declines to participate. Rap is one.

“I love the music of rap, but some of the things rappers say are not in accord with raising a child and having a family,” said Chancler, who, with his ex-wife, has joint custody of his son, Rashon, 10. “So I have a motto: If I can’t bring it home and play it for my son, or my mother, I don’t do it.”

A native of Shreveport, La., Chancler moved to Los Angeles as a youth and went to school at Locke High in Watts, where he encountered three band directors who have influenced him to this day: Reggie Andrews, Don Dustin and Frank Harris.

“They made me a good person and a professional person,” said the musician, whose last album, “Old Friends-New Friends,” was released in 1989 on MCA Records. “I grew up in South Central and having self-esteem, pride, motivation and desire was something that didn’t always happen. These guys instilled all of that in me.”

WHERE AND WHEN

* What: Ndugu Chancler in performance.

* Location: The Room Upstairs at Le Cafe, 14633 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks.

* Hours: 9 and 11 p.m. tonight and Saturday.

* Price: $12 cover, two-drink minimum.

* Call: (818) 986-2662.