Reverend Slingshot
by Art Thompson
Guitar Player, March 2003

Plenty of guitar companies owe their existence to Leo Fender and his revolutionary concept of makingguitars with plank bodies and bolt-on necks. Fender's blueprint inspired legions of imitators, as well as a few innovators. One of whom was Nathan Daniel, an amplifier builder who put a nifty spin on the bolt-on theme with his radical Danelectro guitars. Featuring hollow bodies with Masonite tops and backs, Danos sounded cool, played well, and had an endearing sort of cheesiness that people still find appealing. The differences between a Fender and a Danelectro were night and day but somewhere between these extremes lay the possibility for a guitar that would successfully combine some of the best moves of both.
Ironically, it took another amplifier maker to find the middle ground. Joe Naylor's line of Reverend-brand guitars embody the funky spirit of Danelectro, the playability of Fender, and depending on the pickups, tones that evoke many of the classic axes of the '50s and '60s.

As with other Reverend models, the U.S.-made Slingshot ($679; $814 as tested, direct only) features a lightweight, semi-hollow body made primarily of high-pressure laminates with a 6" -wide block of wood running through the center. Its finish has the soft sheen of an old dinette table, and all of the edges are smoothly beveled. The large, 3-ply pickguard fits well and is nicely finished, and the removable banjo-style armrest provides a smooth, rounded surface to rub your arm against. The Slingshot is the first Reverend to be equipped with P-90-style pickups, and the guitar also sports a Bigsby-style vibrato tailpiece (a $135 option; new Slingshots feature genuine Bigsby units) and a beefy, 6-roller-saddle bridge. The machined-steel unit (which can be locked to its mounting studs) is adjustable for tilt and intonation.

The Slingshot's slim, one-piece maple neck has a comfy "C" shape that even players with small hands will appreciate. The polished, medium frets are carefully trimmed on the ends for a nonsticky feel, and the low action and .010-.046 gauge strings make for silky playability. The thin graphite nut isn't fancy, but its slots are perfectly cut to provide the lowest possible clearance over the first fret. The Slingshot's intonation is good in all positions, and (thanks to the locking tuners and roller saddles) you can yank aggressively on the vibrato without going way out of tune.

Sling Tones

The Slingshot feels comfy and compact in a Fender Mustang sort of way Players with back or neck problems will dig the guitar's light weight, as will anyone who earns their living slinging a guitar for hours each night. The simple controls provide a surprisingly broad range of tones. Played through a '64 Fender Super Reverb (using an assortment of pedals for different shades of grind), tbe Slingshot sounded amazingly full and rich—even at very low volumes. It has a lively and resonant acoustic sound, and the Reverend-made single-coils translate these qualities while adding a girthy zing that puts balls in your clean sounds and rich detail into full-bore distortion tones.
The rear pickup is fat and snappy and it excels for country picking, Clapton-style frazz (a la his tone on "Strange Brew"), and heavy crunch. The Slingshot's clean sounds are warm and ringy, and you never feel like you're stuck in the tin zone when soloing sans distortion. The neck pickup offers a nice balance of power and clarity, delivering everything from round, sweet jazz vibes to greasy blues wails. I like how the tones stay crisp when you turn down the volume, and that the well-voiced tone control never becomes muddy—even when set to zero. The phase switch instantly funkifies your tones in the dual-pickup setting. You get a dip in volume when using this function, but that's okay because it makes you sound extra clean when skanking with a nasally, '70s-style disco tone.

Sling Blade

The Slingshot is a high-quality, professional guitar that offers great tones, excellent playability, and a look that'll definitely get you noticed. By blending aspects of a Fender Strat, a Danelectro U2, a Les Paul Junior, and a Bigsby-equipped Gretsch, Reverend has managed to create a unique instrument that's light, agile, expressive, and—most importantly—a ton of fun.