Despite releasing new &mdash; and very good &mdash; material, Snoop Dogg was more than happy to trade on his old numbers Friday at VooDoo Lounge. Asking the sold-out crowd who came to hear the &ldquo;classic stuff,&rdquo; he beamed when the audience erupted in screams.</p><p>Snoop opened his 80-minute set with &ldquo;The Next Episode.&rdquo; The five-piece backing band added muscle and intensity to Dr. Dre&rsquo;s nimble arrangements. That was followed by the hits &ldquo;P.I.M.P.,&rdquo; originally recorded with 50 Cent in 2003, and 1993&rsquo;s breakthrough &ldquo;Gin and Juice.&rdquo; </p><p>Snoop was so enamored with his early &rsquo;90s, Death Row heyday he brought out Lady of Rage to deliver her part on &ldquo;Afro-Puffs,&rdquo; a song from &ldquo;Doggystyle,&rdquo; Snoop&rsquo;s debut album. Rage has been M.I.A. for better than a decade, but everyone sang along to her hit. Snoop was all smiles, slinking around the stage and working the crowd as Rage took the spotlight. </p><p>The Death Row glory days connection was reinforced when Snoop paid tribute to Tupac Shakur with a performance of &ldquo;Hail Mary.&rdquo;</p><p>There were some concessions to newer material. &ldquo;Riding in My Chevy&rdquo; was well received, but the magnificent &ldquo;Drop It Like It&rsquo;s Hot&rdquo; was tethered to a cover of House of Pain&rsquo;s 1992 hit &ldquo;Jump Around.&rdquo; Also a mystery is why Snoop chose to ignore his upcoming album except for a quick plug at the end of the set.</p><p>At any rate, &ldquo;Hot&rdquo; was the finest musical moment of the night. The band fleshed out the bare-bones album arrangement, adding bigger bass. The performance gradually built in intensity until both the band and crowd were flat-out rocking. </p><p>The biggest problem with Snoop&rsquo;s set was his over-reliance on backup MCs Kurupt and Daz Dillinger. Their solo turns took time away from other songs Snoop could have performed. </p><p>A medley of &ldquo;Deep Cover,&rdquo; &ldquo;Nuthin&rsquo; But A &lsquo;G&rsquo; Thang&rdquo; and &ldquo;B--- Please&rdquo; went off like a flash pot. A delirious crowd devoured every beat, recited every syllable and danced furiously. It was the hip-hop equivalent of &ldquo;Jump&rdquo; or even &ldquo;Jumpin&rsquo; Jack Flash.&rdquo; Snoop closed with another crowd-pleaser: &ldquo;Who Am I? (What&rsquo;s My Name?)&rdquo;</p><p>Openers Method Man and Redman delivered Wu-Tang Clan favorites, solo cuts like &ldquo;Bring the Pain&rdquo; and &ldquo;You&rsquo;re All I Need To Get By,&rdquo; and an obligatory tribute to deceased Wu-Tang member Ol&rsquo; Dirty Bastard.