Was it the power of rock ’n’ roll — or the power of the almighty dollar?

Whatever it was, The Who’s show Friday night at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel certainly exceeded expectations. With a mix of bluster and unspoken sentiment, The Who still proves to be a very formidable powerhouse.

Much has happened in the last three months. In June, legendary Who bassist John Entwistle, 57, died in his Las Vegas hotel room on the onset of the more than 35-year-old British band’s North American tour. Rather than canceling, the remaining members of The Who — vocalist Roger Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend — forged on.

A week after Entwistle’s death, The Who began its profitable tour. High-end tickets are $150, and the industry journal Pollstar reports that Daltrey and Townshend expect to make between $25 to $35 million each.

If it’s the power of money, then money is a very strong inducement. A packed audience at the Arts Center was alternately thrilled and amazed at the passion and panache of The Who.

Townshend is, plainly, an amazing guitarist who draws wails and blasts of sound from his instrument by stabbing, pounding and windmill strumming his guitar strings. A youthful 57, Townshend, dressed in black pants and T-shirt, still leaps and skips across the stage, as if dancing in his own reverie with his guitar — looking up only to cue band members.

Daltrey, dressed in an unbuttoned dress shirt with sleeves rolled up and jeans, is still a rock god. With a commanding stage presence, throaty yells and washboard abs, he’s the archetypal frontman that newcomers like Creed’s Scott Stapp only can aspire to be.

Entwistle’s substitute was session man Pino Palladino, who, like Entwistle, stood motionless throughout the show on the drummer’s right.

John “Rabbitt” Bundrick, The Who’s long-time keyboardist, was on hand, as well as drummer Zak Starkey, Ringo Starr’s son. (Original drummer Keith Moon died in 1978 of a drug overdose.) Simon Townshend, Pete’s younger brother, sang backup and filled in on second guitar.

As for Entwistle, he was “remembered” in a film shown preceding The Who’s set on the amphitheater’s video screens. He was not mentioned by name during the band’s performance.

The Who’s set list spanned the band’s career, starting with its first hit, “I Can’t Explain.” The early Mod period of the group was covered with “Substitute” and “Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere.” Songs from the early 1970s “Who’s Next” album included “Bargain,” and “Baba O’Riley,” and the mid-1970s experimental “Quadrophenia” concept album was represented with a stirring “Love Reign O’er Me.”

An extended, acoustic-based “The Kids Are Alright” led into their two biggest hits, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “My Generation.” Then came the amazing “Tommy” encore: “Pinball Wizard,” “Amazing Journey,” “Sparks” and “See Me, Feel Me.” The musicians on stage created a vortex of sound, energy and passion, the likes of which is rarely seen.

Robert Plant, lead singer of Led Zeppelin, opened the show with his new band Strange Sensation, which dabbled in jazzy noodlings and Middle Eastern vibes. However, Plant, 54, did treat his audience to several Zeppelin classics, such as “Whole Lotta Love.” But, frankly, the puffy-faced, wizened former rock sex symbol did look a little out of sorts performing Zeppelin’s “Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You.”

At this point, “Babe” would probably say good riddance.

Chris Jordan: (732) 565-7275; e-mail: cjordan@thnt.com.