Steven Tyler claims he did not fall off the wagon before he fell on his face in the shower this week ... but says he understands why people might not believe him.

Tyler -- who went public about his issues with substance abuse in the past -- called in to the "Today' show this morning to talk to Matt Lauer about rumors he was using again.

Tyler responded, "I get that people think that ... It still bothers me a little, but it's something that I have to deal with for the rest of my life."

He added, "We flew last night from Paraguay after that incident and we're in Argentina for two hours. And anyone who knows anyone who uses substances wouldn't be up at this hour having a talk with Matt Lauer and the rest of America."

Moments later, Matt asked, "But you're clean and sober, that's not the issue?"

Tyler replied, "No, it's not the issue."

One day after Steven Tyler slipped and broke his face in a Paraguay shower, the rocker hit the stage in Asuncion last night sporting two new teeth ... and a gnarly shiner under his right eye.

Tyler's rep claims the singer was dehydrated from food poisoning when he collapsed in his shower Tuesday morning -- smashing his face and knocking out a couple of teeth.


63-year-old Tyler was treated by a local dental surgeon who replaced the chompers -- and judging by the fact that he performed an entire concert without a hitch ... the surgery couldn't have gone better.

Steven Tyler's face has some new hardware -- thanks to a Paraguayan dentist, who implanted two teeth in the singer's mouth ... to replace the ones he lost in that nasty hotel shower accident yesterday.

The dentist -- a woman named Maria Bastos -- called into a local radio station today, claiming the singer is "doing splendidly" after the procedure.

As we first reported ... Tyler -- who says he was dehydrated from food poisoning -- collapsed and smacked his face in a hotel shower yesterday, knocking out two teeth.

Aerosmith postponed their concert last night due to the accident -- but we just checked ... and tonight's show is still scheduled to rock on.

Steven Tyler was suffering from dehydration caused by a bout of food poisoning when he collapsed in a Paraguay hotel shower today ... sources connected to Tyler tell TMZ.

Tyler was reportedly treated for injuries to his face ... including loss of teeth ... after the accident occurred.

TMZ spoke with the singer's manager ... who described Tyler's injuries as "minor" and said Steven has already been released from the hospital.

The rep notes that Aerosmith has rescheduled tonight's concert for tomorrow due to the accident -- and says Tyler would like to "sincerely apologize" for any inconvenience this may have caused his fans.

Steven Tyler smashed his face during a "nasty fall" in a hotel shower ... knocking out several teeth ... this according to multiple reports out of Paraguay.

Tyler -- who was scheduled to perform in Paraguay with Aerosmith tonight -- was reportedly rushed to a nearby hospital.

A rep for the venue where the band was supposed to perform tells TMZ ... tonight's concert has been canceled.

No comment so far from Tyler's rep.

Story developing ...

Michaele Salahi posed for a suggestive photo, hip-to-hip, with the likes of Steven Tyler -- more than five years before she decided to run off with Journey guitarist Neal Schon.

TMZ obtained the photo taken backstage during an Aerosmith concert in Bristow, Virginia -- and the story behind it is pretty wild.

Tareq Salahi is telling friends he and Michaele (aka "groupie slut") went to the show together without backstage passes -- oh, the horror --but then Michaele mysteriously disappeared for more than an hour.

We're told ... when Yoko Michaele returned she produced the photo with Steven AND an all-access backstage pass for ALL Aerosmith concerts!

We're told Michaele's explanation for the pic, at the time, was ... she and Steven were just seeing who had a flatter stomach. Steven's rep had no comment.

Eat your heart out, Pamela Des Barres.

Wearing a pair of Haley Reinhart's "American Idol" short shorts, Steven Tyler showed off his 63-year-old smooth legs in Maui on Wednesday.


Dude looks like he's in lady pants.

Steven Tyler claims he took the gig on "American Idol" to show his Aerosmith bandmates that he wouldn't be "held hostage" by them ... after the band threatened to kick Tyler to the curb.



Tyler dropped a whole series of truth bombs during an interview with Rolling Stone ... in which he explains, "Did I take this job to show the band? F**k, yeah. Not to show them, but that I can't be held hostage anymore. I will be my own hostage. The band can't throw me out."

During the interview, Tyler also reveals he went on a drug binge with Joe Perry a few years ago during an "ill-fated attempt to cut a new album."

Tyler told the mag ... the album never got made because, "Joe was high and he couldn't play ... I couldn't sing, really, because I was snorting everything, and it f**ks up your throat. It was the wrong time."

One more fun fact from the article -- when it came to the "Idol" gig, Tyler was up against The Who legend Roger Daltrey ... but producers passed on Roger because they felt he was "Very formal, his hair was cut, he looked like a regular guy. He had lost that sort of rock & roll charm."

Steven Tyler has blown up even bigger because of "American Idol" -- and he's making a big move, telling our photog yesterday he's gonna shoot a music video for a new song ... and no Aerosmith.


The music video shoot will go down Monday.

By the way ... Tyler has a memoir called "Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?" coming out on May 3.

Aero-who?

Steven Tyler claims his Aerosmith bandmates were "jealous" when he became an "American Idol" judge ... interesting, considering Joe Perry recently slammed Tyler for getting involved with the show.


Tyler explained the band's ongoing beef today after his long-awaited "Idol" unveiling -- but added that when push comes to shove, "I'm sure they're real happy for me."

Sure they are.

Joe Perry is continuing to blast his Aerosmith bandmate Steven Tyler over his new "American Idol" gig -- but now, Joe's done dragged the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles into the feud.


Perry went off on Tyler during an interview with the Calgary Herald -- saying, "It's his business, but I don't want Aerosmith's name involved with [American Idol]. We have nothing to do with it."

Perry added, "[Idol] is a reality show designed to get people to watch that station and sell advertising ... it's one step above Ninja Turtles."

As for the future of the band, Perry once again threatened to replace Tyler -- saying, "[You've got] four guys that are great together, and if you find the right singer, there's no reason you can't go and entertain people."

For the record -- the Ninja Turtles also used to sing ...