Roger Daltrey was an absolute lion at the microphone for most of the night. He roared proudly through the classic cuts “The Real Me,” “5:15” and “Love, Reign O’er Me.”

from out of the crowd — and then for a two-night stand at the HP Pavilion in San Jose in 1996.

What makes the lasting appeal of “Quadrophenia” so surprising, and satisfying, is that it’s anything but a de-facto “greatest hits” album. Of the 17 tracks that make up the two-album set, only a handful can be called true fan favorites. The album is a complex, challenging rock opera, one that hardly offers the kind of grand drama to be found in rock operas like Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” and The Who’s own “Tommy.” To simplify things greatly, it’s the musical story of a young man trying to find his way in the world while battling a personality disorder. Rather than lending itself in concert to mind-blowing theatrics, or conjuring larger-than-life characters, like “Tommy,” “Quadrophenia” is a strictly musical treasure.

But perhaps most important, you feel as if you’ve been on a worthwhile journey by the time the band concludes the production with the immortal anthem “Love, Reign O’er Me.”

The band, still led by ageless vocalist Roger Daltrey and guitarist-mastermind Pete Townshend, certainly didn’t spend a lot of money on this production. The effects were contained to overhead and stage-side video screens, which flipped back and forth between stage shots and archival footage of the band, news-reel-like historical footage from the 1960s and ’70s, and occasional atmospheric montages that served as a sort of second light show.

The Who opened with “I Am the Sea,” the first cut from “Quadrophenia,” and zoomed through every track on the album in order over approximately 100 minutes. In general, the live takes sounded very close to the album, which is exactly what fans wanted.

Daltrey, who at 68 still isn’t shy about baring his chest for all to see, was an absolute lion at the microphone for most of the night. He roared proudly through the classic cuts “The Real Me,” “5:15” and “Love, Reign O’er Me.” His voice started to give out come encore time, when The Who ventured into greatest-hits territory, but he somehow managed to stand tall when it mattered most — delivering the famed scream with gusto at the end of “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”

Townshend, the only other original member left in the band, also was in fine form. He delivered a particularly soulful guitar solo during “5:15” and managed to thrill everyone in the house with that heroic lead — one of the most cherished in all of rock ’n’ roll — at the beginning of “Pinball Wizard,” which came during the six-song encore.

The other musicians on-stage also made solid contributions. Pete’s brother, Simon Townshend, was a mighty force on guitar and even handled lead vocals on “The Dirty Jobs,” while drummer Zak Starsky (Ringo Starr’s son) and bassist Pino Palladino were terrific as always.

Follow Jim Harrington at http://Twitter.com/jimthecritic, www.Facebook.com/jim.bayareanews, and http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/category/concerts.