Mixerr Album Reviews #1,619

This is Michael Mixerr.  Today I am going to review The Dayton Family ‎– Dope Dayton Ave. album!

Dope Dayton Ave. was a demo pressed on cassette and released on GrayT Records (GreyT Records) in 1991.  The Dayton Family had this tape circulating around Flint, Michigan. Only 500 copies were ever made and released. This demo tape is extremely and hard to come by or even find in retail stores. This album was released only in Flint. This demo cassette became a cult classic and a fan favorite in the underground scene of Flint rap amongst TDF fans. This tape was sold at Wyatt Earp’s Store in Flint also.

Some tracks from their demo cassette were from the albums FBI and What’s On My Mind. Most of these tracks are the demo versions which are different from the studio versions seen or heard from the albums FBI and What’s On My Mind. This demo is realistically more of an EP than an actual full length album due to its short duration. Steve Pitts mixed and produced the demo at Silver Sun Studios in Flint, Michigan.

Some versions of the cassette only have 5 songs while fans say they have copies that had either 6 or 7 songs. The amount of songs varies according to fans. It has been confirmed by Shoestring that a 5 song EP on cassette was released in 1991.

As with all Dayton Family albums the subject matter is pure gangsta with drug dealing being a reoccurring theme. The beats are excellent! This album is gangsta rap at its finest.


This version of Dope Dayton Ave. is quite similar to the 1995 version of Dope Dayton Ave. heard on the What’s On My Mind album. Only the sound is a lot less polished and unmastered in terms of production and sound quality. This version of Dope Dayton Ave. has a more ghetto underground sound. The beats are raw. This is where The Dayton Family gets real raw. They are constantly aggressive on the track.

Dope Dayton Ave. is named after the infamous Dayton Avenue, is known as one of the most crime-ridden streets in Flint, Michigan. Bootleg, Shoestring, and Backstabba rap about coming up from their own upbringings living in the hardest conditions of the United States of America. The trio’s name is derived from Dayton Avenue in Flint.

This was the first track The Dayton Family had ever recorded. Dope Dayton Ave. was recorded in 1991 and released on a cassette single that was a demo with Ghetto Thang included. Dope Dayton Ave. was re-recorded in 1994 with Mark Taylor and J Robinson producing the track. The group began working with local producer Steve Pitts and formed The Dayton Family later.

Backstabba gets hardcore and aggressive. The track is known for its patterns of aggressiveness. Read his verses used in the lyrics of Dope Dayton Ave.:

nobody fucks me
especially on Dayton Avenue
because all I do is smoke weed, sell crack, and screw
brew too


Ghetto Thang is a demo of Ghetto from the FBI album that dropped in 1996. This version of Ghetto is very much different from the version of Ghetto on the FBI album. Ghetto Thang samples Art of Noise - Moments in Love while Ghetto on the FBI album samples The Floaters - Float On. This song was recorded in 1991.

The lyrics are very much different from each other but have the same concept of living in a cycle of poverty. However Ghetto Thang has some similar lyrics to Ghetto from the FBI album. K-Mill (R.I.P.) of Raw Deal speaks at the end of Ghetto Thang.

Ghetto Thang provides emotional insight showcasing the life cycle of poverty. The mood is sad and mournful. The lyrics are very much different from each other but have the same concept of living life in a cycle of poverty. It's about survival. Hustling and trying to have a normal life in an impossible environment.


This version of FBI is much different from the version found on the 1996 FBI album. This version uses samples while the 1996 version does not. This version of FBI was produced by Mark Taylor instead of Steve Pitts FBI samples The Isley Brothers - For The Love Of You and Ludwig van Beethoven - Für Elise. The beats have different arrangements, persuasion selection, samples, filters, rhythm, and sound from the 1996 version of FBI. Mark Taylor used equal temperament while producing the track. Its enharmonic sound is quite notable. J Robinson laid down the arrangements.

Ludwig van Beethoven - Für Elise is the most the notable sample that used throughout the track being that the sample is looped itself over as the background music. Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor (WoO 59, Bia 515) for solo piano, commonly known as Für Elise, is the highlight sample for this track.

The piece is in A minor and is set in at 3|8 time. The song does not lack atonality (lacks a tonal center or key). Left-hand arpeggios are delayed by a 16th note with extra bars in the B section and finally last is the rising A minor arpeggio figure. It begins with an A minor theme marked Poco moto (little movement), with the left hand playing arpeggios alternating between A minor and E major. Then the pitch shifts to the C note (C major) descending into the A note (A minor).

The sample is played in A minor with pitch shifting to B using the ABA scale such as follows.: A-B-A
The ABA scale is the most noticeable music scale used on FBI. A brief section is based around C major and A minor. C major descends into A minor. The structure is A–B–A–C–A in rondo form. The structure is A–B–A–C–A in rondo form much of which is looped throughout the track.

FBI takes ride through one of the worst ghettos of in the United States of America with such gruesome imagery and powerful narratives. FBI is a classic without a doubt. The track itself is a cult classic for Dayton Family fans.


Musical arrangements and beats for the demo version of Flint Town are much different from the version of Flint Town that appeared on the What’s On My Mind album. The lyrics are slightly different with alternative verses not heard of the What’s On My Mind album. Treble is reduced on the demo version of this track as well. Flint Town samples the beat of Run DMC - Rock Box.

Mark Taylor produced the demo version while Steve Pitts produced the 1994 version. This version of Flint Town was recorded in 1991 at Silver Sun Studios and Reynolds RAPP Studio.

Flint Town is the track that made The Dayton Family a legendary rap ground in the streets of Flint, the state of Michigan, and throughout the Midwest US. This is the absolute highlight track for this demo!

The Dayton Family refutes the notion that race does not matter in American society. Flint is not a prosperous scenic town inhabited by celebrities. Michael Jackson says “Black or white, it shouldn’t matter.”. This is a reference to Michael Jackson - Black Or White where Michael Jackson says race shouldn’t matter.

Clearly Michael Jackson was living in an idealistic, magical place like Hollywood, California. Flint is a place where things are very rough and race matters. The Dayton Family feels there isn’t any way out of a bleak environment.

The city of Flint was once racially segregated by district zoning lines. These district zoning lines were politically structured and altered over the years. These district zoning lines were set up by politicians to keep minorities oppressed.

The movie industry pays no attention to the plight of Flint. Although, however, Michael Moore’s 1989 documentary Roger and Me shed light on the deindustrialization situation that hurt Flint severely.

Bootleg tried to go to college but didn’t feel he could fit in anyway due to his social, economic, and racial background. This indicates life in Flint is difficult and there is limited opportunity to receive higher education. There are several colleges in the area such as  the University of Michigan – Flint, and Kettering University Bootleg makes commentary on discrimination in the college admissions process. University of Michigan’s  Affirmative Action policies are often racist. This has been a big issue and still is.

Flint keeps people trapped in an impoverished environment. It is so hard to escape the drugs and violence that plague Flint. He refuses to work hard at a fast food franchise and still be poor. He can’t live in a nice condo as he would still be in the hood.

Flint Town is a track that made The Dayton Family a legendary rap ground in the streets of Flint, the state of Michigan, and throughout the Midwest US. The Dayton Family discusses to the listeners what’s on their mind while not holding back of course. Flint Town without a doubt is a classic track that still gets play to this very day by many people.

The Dayton Family comes with a “no holds barred attitude” in aggressive form on this track and several other tracks of theirs. Any fan of hardcore gangsta rap willing to accept the truth and daily reality will enjoy this track!


What’s On My Mind is another track that made The Dayton Family a legendary rap ground in the streets of Flint, the state of Michigan, and throughout the Midwest US. The Dayton Family discusses to the listeners what’s on their mind while not holding back of course. The Dayton Family comes with a “no holds barred attitude” in aggressive form on this track and several other tracks of theirs. Any fan of hardcore gangsta rap will enjoy this track!

The Dayton Family does not hold back for anything! For example, read these verses to the lyrics of What’s On My Mind.:

What's on my mind is a rape in progress
I got my dick in between some bitch’s breasts
What's on my mind is a knife at a hoe’s throat
I took her gold, her pussy, and her mink coat


Fantasies is a track that was recorded by The Dayton Family in 1991. This version of Fantasies was recorded at Silver Sun Studios and Bangtown Productions. The demo version of Fantasies samples The Isley Brothers - For The Love Of You. The demo version of Fantasies has more added flavor than the studio version. The demo version of Fantasies is a totally different version than the studio version of Fantasies.

Fantasies is a track perfect for a vacation on a tropical island or a long cruise down the road while traveling. But most definitely Fantasies is song perfect for a vacation on a tropical island for sunny weather or the summer season.


Jake The Flake is a hidden bonus track included on the Dope Dayton Ave. demo. The track is a Jake The Flake solo. The track Jake The Flake is both an underground classic and a Flint rap classic amongst Jake The Flake fans. Good hardcore shit right here.

The bass is quite heavy with pultruding bass lines with different musical notes. Mark Taylor arranged the heavy bass lines. Steve Pitts mixed the track. The song Jake The Flake was recorded at Bangtown Productions in 1991 before his debut single Time To Go Legit dropped. .

Jake The Flake was this kid from the Flint ghetto who was a drug dealer. He was selling kilograms of cocaine every week. He was the one pushing large amounts of weight in Flint at that time. The whole track describes his drug dealing past and run-ins with law enforcement.


I rate this EP, Dope Dayton Ave., 5/5*****!!