FAIRBORN — When last we saw the legendary musical group The Who, the band had embarked on its 25th anniversary tour in which it featured the classic rock opera “Tommy” during the first set of each show and a bevy of its most popular songs during the second.

That was 1989 and many expected the tour to be the last reunion of the rockers who first disbanded in 1982. But in the spirit of a championship boxer in search of a big payday, the group is together once again for a limited tour showcasing the 1973 rock opera “Quadrophenia” and several Who standards as an encore.

The Who rolled into the Ervin J. Nutter Center at Wright State University Monday marking the first time the group has appeared in the area since 1979’s tragic concert at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Coliseum that claimed the lives of 11 concertgoers.

No mention was made of that show during Monday’s concert, but guitarist Pete Townshend did acknowledge Dayton’s rich inventive history by joking that the group would be taking home a lot of cash from the concert in the city's very own trademark cash registers.

Accompanying the three surviving original members Townshend, lead singer Roger Daltrey and bassist John Entwisle, were fellow British rockers Gary Glitter (who resembled Elvis on steroids) and the sinewy, rubber-limbed rebel yeller himself, Billy Idol (performing quite ably to some surprise) — not to mention an elaborate horn section, background vocalists, Townshend’s brother Simon on lead guitar and Ringo Starr’s son Zak Starkey on, you guessed it, drums.

Despite some graying hair, the years have been kind to the group and it looked very little like one of the pioneering bands that helped usher in the British invasion more than 30 years ago with the likes of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks. Instead, The Who turned in a performance that would blow away that of any of their contemporary peers. Pearl Jam — give me a break.

“Quadrophenia” is kind of like the poorer cousin of 1969’s “Tommy” and tells the story of Jimmy, a Brit with four personalities who is a member of the Mods — a faction that does battle with the Rockers. The story is told through the music of The Who with the accompaniment of a large screen projection above the elaborate stage setting.

The “Quadrophenia” set lasted more than an hour and a half and dragged in parts through sheer repetitiveness.

True diehards followed along and seemed enthused throughout, but most of the audience came alive when songs from the opera that had made it to the mainstream were performed by the group. These included “The Real Me,” “5:15” and “Love Reign O’er Me.”

Daltrey, who did not spend a lot of money or time on his costuming, looked as fit as a man half his age and proved he is still one of the preeminent rock singers of all time.

Townshend used an acoustic guitar for most of the concert as a concession to his hearing loss from years of playing ear-blasting rock, but got the axe out a few times and jammed like few others.

Entwisle’s fingers danced across the strings of his instrument much like Fred Astaire across a ballroom floor during one particular solo and he proved he could play bass — much like a lead guitar.

As usual, the stoic bassist stayed mainly in the background and let his more prominent bandmates take center stage. Along with the music and lighting, Townshend’s theatrics and Daltrey’s flailing of the microphone and stage presence proved to be a show within a show.

Following the rock opera, the trio performed an acoustic version of the hard driving “Won’t Get Fooled Again” before once again being joined by their comrades for a high energy version of “Behind Blue Eyes” and one of the band’s signature songs, “Who Are You.”

It’s hard to consider them Jurassic Rockers, and if they can remain civil toward one another, this may not be the last we see of The Who as we head into the next millennium. They may be older than the president, but more than likely they'll be around for more than four years.