Crowded House front man Neil Finn and American singer-songwriter Ryan Adams have clashed on the set of a long-running UK television show.

And the confrontation between the pair has prompted an ugly online spat between Adams, Finn and grammy award-winner Janis Ian, who performed alongside the pair on the show.

The showdown took place on The Songwriter's Circle , which brings together three well-known songwriters to perform and discuss their own and each other's music.

But according to 60-year-old Ian, the performance "went south" when Adams refused to collaborate on Finn's Crowded House hit Fall At Your Feet.