Scott McCaughey and Peter Buck seemingly have been joined at the musical hip since McCaughey started his tenure as a R.E.M. sideman in the mid-’90s.

Three-quarters of R.E.M. — Peter Buck, Mike Mills and drummer-turned-farmer Bill Berry — reunited onstage tonight in Portland, Ore., at the second of two benefit concerts for Scott McCaughey, the longtime R.E.M. sideman who suffered a stroke in November. See video from the reunion performances here.

A host of musicians — including R.E.M.’s Peter Buck and Mike Mills, as well as Alejandro Escovedo, members of Sleater-Kinney, The Decemberists, Drive-By Truckers and The Shins, and more — will perform two concerts in Portland, Ore., next month to raise money for Scott McCaughey, who suffered a stroke last month.

Scott McCaughey, leader of the Young Fresh Fellows and the Minus 5, and who spent 17 years as a touring guitarist and multi-instrumentalist for R.E.M., suffered a stroke while on a tour of the West Coast with Alejandro Escovedo, his wife announced today. He is in stable condition, but a long recovery is expected.

Back in June, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills and Peter Buck traveled to Norway for the Sun Station Vadsø festival, featuring performances by a series of intertwined bands including The Dream Syndicate, Filthy Friends, The Minus 5 and The Baseball Project. Watch footage of them playing R.E.M. songs.

Former R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck’s commitment to making new music — and releasing it on vinyl — continues this fall when he follows up his recently released second solo album with a brand-new four-track 7-inch EP titled Opium Drivel. The 33 rpm EP will be released Oct. 21 on Buck’s usual label, Mississippi Records.

There very well could have been a full-fledged R.E.M. reunion in Portland, Ore., on Saturday night as all four members of the defunct college-rock superstars performed after Peter Buck’s wedding. But, by all appearances, they managed to avoid such headlines, just barely, by not actually sharing the stage together.