The Doors' drummer John Densmore is suing two of his bandmates for using the rock group's name in a reunion concert later this week.

He claims the concert, featuring Cult singer Ian Astbury on vocals and former Police drummer Stewart Copeland, cannot legally be called a Doors show, in the suit filed in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The concert is due to take place at the Universal Amphitheatre in Hollywood on Friday.

It shouldn't be called the Doors if it's someone other than Jim singing John Densmore

Densmore said he wants the band billed as "the former members of the Doors".

"It could be Windows, the Hinges, I don't care what it is," he said.

Densmore, 58, is suing keyboard player Ray Manzarek, 63, and guitarist Robby Krieger, 57, for breach of contract, trademark infringement and unfair competition.

"I'm sad and hurt that my former bandmates are misusing the logo and the name, confusing people," he said.

The band were one of the biggest acts of the 1960s

"It shouldn't be called the Doors if it's someone other than Jim singing."

But Manzarek said he and Krieger were calling themselves "The Doors, 21st Century."

The Doors, one of the biggest bands of the 1960s, broke up a few years after the 1971 death of their charismatic singer Jim Morrison.

Veto

The name and logo of the band are owned by a partnership of the three surviving members, together with the estate of Morrison and his late wife Pamela Courson.

John Densmore said the elderly parents of Morrison were "livid" about the reunion show,

He said each member of the Doors had the power to veto a decision made by the other three, and this was something which had been decided when the group was formed in 1965.

He pulled out of a reunion show last year because he was suffering from tinnitus, and, he said, partly because he had decided the show was against his principles.

But he said he did not want to stop the concert, because he did not want to upset fans of the band who wanted to see the songs performed live.

Stuart Copeland, who is also named in the suit along with Ian Astbury, was drafted in to replace him.

The three surviving members of the band have played together recently.

In 1993 they played the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction with Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder guesting on vocals.

They also held a TV concert in 2000 with a number of singers, which Densmore said was a series of "tributes" to Morrison.

Last week, Beach Boy Al Jardine was stopped from using the name The Beach Boys Family and Friends after legal action from his former bandmate Mike Love.