Unwritten

Unwritten
Studio album by Natasha Bedingfield
Released	6 September 2004 / November 29, 2007
Recorded	2004; New York City, U.S.
Genre	Pop
Length	47:01 56:22 (U.K.) 56:55 (U.S.)
Label	Phonogenic
Producer	Danielle Brisebois, Guy Chambers, Richard Flack, Andrew Frampton, Peter Wade Keusch, Steve Kipner, Nick Lashley, Patrick Leonard, Wayne Rodrigues, Greg Wells, Wayne Wilkins
Natasha Bedingfield chronology
Unwritten (2004) N.B. / Pocketful of Sunshine (2007 / 08)
Singles from Unwritten
"Single" Released: 13 July 2004 "These Words" Released: 5 October 2004 "Unwritten" Released: 29 November 2004 "I Bruise Easily" Released: 4 April 2005

Unwritten is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter Natasha Bedingfield. It was released in the United Kingdom on 6 September 2004, where it debuted at number one, and in the United States on 2 August 2005, where it debuted at number twenty-six. It spawned the singles "Single", "These Words", "Unwritten", which later served as the theme song from MTV reality series The Hills, "I Bruise Easily" and "The One That Got Away" (which was only released in North America). The song "Drop Me in the Middle" featured rapper Bizarre of D12 on the international and UK versions of the album, but the U.S. version featured rapper/singer Estelle. In 2006, the album was re-released in North America with new album artwork and a slightly altered track listing. The album is replayed on November 29, 2007.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
BBC Music	(positive)[2]
PopMatters	[3]
musicOMH	(positive)[4]
Rolling Stone	[5]

The album received generally positive reviews from most critics. Earning a 7 out of 10 from PopMatters, Adrien Begrand, who said the album was Bedingfield's "brand of clever, R&B infused pop." Though, he went on to admit that the album was "not without its pitfalls."^[3] David Hooper from BBC gave the album another positive review, writing "there's no denying this is a finely-crafted number with bold, voluptuous harmonies. It's guaranteed to thrill, at least for the first 30 plays." Further, Hollow stated "Unwritten is a textbook quality pop album, lifted by Natasha's strong voice, immaculate production and some absolutely corking singles. Whether you like it or not, you won't be able to get those tunes out of your head."^[2]

UK-based music review website musicOMH critic David Welsh praised the album, compared Bedingfield's success to that of her brother, calling the album "a startlingly accomplished debut outing, letting the whole world know that Daniel is by no means the only talented Bedingfield out there." Welsh continued to add that Unwritten was "both musically note-worthy and lyrically substantial", concluding that there was "no shame in adding this to your collection."^[4]

Album

For more information, see Sony BMG CD copy protection scandal

In November 2005, the Electronic Frontier Foundation identified Unwritten as one of the discs with Extended Copy Protection, a controversial invasive software.^[6] However, the DualDisc release does not contain such software.

Track listing

Unwritten
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"These Words"	Natasha Bedingfield Steve Kipner Andrew Frampton Wayne Wilkins	Kipner Frampton Wilkins	3:36
2.	"Single"	Bedingfield Kipner Frampton Wilkins	Kipner Frampton Wilkins	3:57
3.	"I'm a Bomb"	Bedingfield Kipner Frampton Wilkins	Kipner Frampton Wilkins	3:42
4.	"Unwritten"	Bedingfield Danielle Brisebois Wayne Rodrigues	Rodrigues Brisebois	4:19
5.	"I Bruise Easily"	Bedingfield Frampton Wilkins Paul Herman	Frampton Wilkins	4:14
6.	"If You're Gonna..."	Bedingfield Kipner Frampton Wilkins	Kipner Frampton Wilkins	3:22
7.	"Silent Movie"	Bedingfield Guy Chambers	Chambers Richard Flack	3:47
8.	"We're All Mad"	Bedingfield Brisebois Nick Lashley	Rodrigues Brisebois Lashley	4:48
9.	"Frogs & Princes"	Bedingfield Kipner Frampton Wilkins	Kipner Frampton	3:45
10.	"Drop Me in the Middle" (featuring Bizarre from D12)	Bedingfield Brisebois Rodrigues Rufus Johnson	Rodrigues Brisebois	4:16
11.	"Wild Horses"	Bedingfield Kipner Frampton Wilkins	Kipner Frampton	4:01
12.	"Sojourn" (hidden track)			3:19

Unwritten — UK edition (bonus tracks)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
12.	"Size Matters"	Bedingfield Kipner Frampton Wilkins	Kipner Frampton Wilkins	3:25
13.	"Peace of Me"	Bedingfield Patrick Leonard Kara DioGuardi	Leonard	3:45
14.	"Sojourn" (hidden track)			3:19
Total length:				54:16

American and Japanese edition

1. "These Words" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:38
2. "Single" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:54
3. "Unwritten" (Bedingfield, Brisebois, Rodrigues) – 4:18
4. "Silent Movie" (Bedingfield, Chambers) – 3:45
5. "Stumble" (Shelly Peiken, Greg Wells) – 3:36
6. "Peace of Me" (Bedingfield, Kara DioGuardi, Pat Leonard) – 3:42
7. "If You're Gonna ..." (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:12
8. "Drop Me in the Middle" (featuring Estelle) (Bedingfield, Brisebois, Rodrigues, Estelle Swaray) – 4:14
9. "We're All Mad" (Bedingfield, Brisebois, Lashley) – 4:46
10. "I Bruise Easily" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Herman, Wilkins) – 4:12
11. "The One That Got Away" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Michael Tafaro, Nathan Winkler) – 4:16
12. "Size Matters" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:23
13. "Wild Horses" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Wilkins) – 3:55
    • "Sojourn" (hidden track) (Bedingfield, O'Mahony, Keynes, Harwood) – 3:19

• There is also a DualDisc of the American edition available, which features the music videos for "These Words" (US version), "Single", and "I Bruise Easily", in addition to the making of the video for "These Words" and an interview with Natasha.
• Japanese pressings features a booklet with the Japanese lyrics and obi strip.

American 2006 re-issue

1. "These Words" (Manny Marroquin Mix) (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:36
2. "Single" ('06 Mix) (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:55
3. "Unwritten" (Bedingfield, Brisebois, Rodrigues) – 4:15
4. "Silent Movie" (Bedingfield, Chambers) – 3:47
5. "I Bruise Easily" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Herman, Wilkins) – 4:13
6. "If You're Gonna ..." (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:20
7. "Drop Me in the Middle" (featuring Estelle) (Bedingfield, Brisebois, Rodrigues, Estelle Swaray) – 3:43
8. "Peace of Me" (Bedingfield, Kara DioGuardi, Pat Leonard) – 3:42
9. "We're All Mad" (Bedingfield, Brisebois, Lashley) – 4:44
10. "Stumble" (Shelly Peiken, Greg Wells) – 3:36
11. "The One That Got Away" (Wamdue Pop Rocks Mix) (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Michael Tafaro, Nathan Winkler) – 4:56
12. "Size Matters" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Kipner, Wilkins) – 3:25
13. "Wild Horses" (Bedingfield, Frampton, Wilkins) – 3:58
    • "Sojourn" (hidden track) (Bedingfield, O'Mahony, Keynes, Harwood) – 3:19

Release history

Region	Date
United Kingdom	6 September 2004
Australia	11 October 2004
United States	2 August 2005

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (2004–05) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] 89 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[8] 26 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 20 Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)[10] 33 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] 23 UK Albums (OCC)[12] 1 US Billboard 200 26

Certifications Region Certification Sales/shipments United Kingdom (BPI)[13] 3× Platinum 900,000^^ United States (RIAA)[14] Gold 500,000^^ ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone ^xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Performance credits

• Natasha Bedingfield – primary artist, lead vocals, background vocals, songwriting
• Keith Andes – additional keyboards (on "Drop Me in the Middle")
• Dave Catlin-Birch – bass (on "Silent Movie")
• Guy Chambers – guitar, keyboards
• Justin Clayton – bass (on "Peace of Me")
• Larry Corbett – cello (on "Peace of Me")
• Keith Crouch – Hammond B-3 organ (on "Unwritten")
• Paul Gordon – keyboards (on "We're All Mad")
• Nick Ingman – string arrangements, conductor
• Patrick Leonard – music programming, keyboards (on "Peace of Me")
• David Low – cello (on "Stumble")
• Tim Pierce – guitar (on "Peace of Me")
• Robbie Campos – guitar, keyboards
• Michele Richards – violin (on "Peace of Me")
• Josephina Vergara – violin (on "Peace of Me")
• Greg Wells – bass, guitar, piano, drums
• Joey Waronker - drums (on "Peace of Me")
• Danielle Brisebois – background vocals (on "Unwritten")
• Jessica Collins – background vocals (on "Unwritten" and "Drop Me In The Middle")
• Nikola Bedingfield – background vocals (on "Unwritten" and "Drop Me In The Middle")
• Ryan Collins – background vocals (on "Unwritten")
• J. Curtis – guitar (on "Size Matters")
• Nick Lashley – guitar, keyboards
• Wayne Wilkins – piano, keyboards
• Chris Brown – bass (on "If You're Gonna...")
• Paul Herman – guitar (on "I Bruise Easily")
• Wayne Rodrigues – keyboards, turntables
• Andrew Frampton – guitar, keyboards
• Simon Hill – drums (on "If You're Gonna...")
• Andrew Duckles – viola (on "Peace of Me")
• Tony Hodson – guitar (on "Drop Me in the Middle")
• Paul Stanborough – additional guitars (on "Silent Movie")

Other credits

• Steve Kipner – producer, vocal arrangements
• Guy Chambers – producer
• Joe Chiccarelli – engineer
• John Hill – producer
• Nick Ingman – string arrangements, string conductor
• Patrick Leonard – programming, producer
• Steve MacMillan – engineer
• Herb Powers – mastering
• Greg Wells – programming, producer
• Gavyn Wright – string conductor
• Danielle Brisebois – producer, vocal arrangements
• Suzie Katayama – string contractor
• Nick Lashley – producer, engineer
• David Channing – digital editing
• Michael Perfitt – engineer, digital editing
• Ryan Freeland – engineer
• James Cruz – mastering
• Wayne Wilkins – programming, producer, engineer, vocal arrangements, string arrangements
• Ian Cuttler – art direction
• Richard Flack – producer, engineer, drum programming
• Robbie Campos – vocal arrangements, string arrangements
• Wayne Rodrigues – producer, engineer, digital editing, vocal arrangements, drum programming, Pro-Tools
• Andrew Frampton – programming, producer, vocal arrangements, string arrangements
• Michelle Holme – art direction
• Kieron Menzies – engineer
• Chris Steffen – engineer
• Peter Wade Keusch – producer
• Lee Groves – mixing programmer
• Natasha Bedingfield – vocal arrangements, writer
• Michael Tafaro – producer, vocal arrangements
• Nathan Winkler – producer, vocal arrangements

References

1. "Allmusic review".
2. Hollow, David (2005-09-06). "BBC – Music – Review of Natasha Bedingfield Unwritten". BBC Music. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
3. Begrand, Adrien (2005-09-27). "Natasha Bedingfield: Unwritten". PopMatters. BUZZMEDIA Music. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
4. Welsh, David (2004-09-06). "Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten". musicOMH. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
5. Hoard, Christian (25 August 2005). Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten at the Wayback Machine (archived 1 April 2009). Rolling Stone.
6. Are You Affected By Sony-BMG's Rootkit? (9 November 2005) from Electronic Frontier Foundation
7. "Australiancharts.com – Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten". Hung Medien.
8. "Austriancharts.at – Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten" (in German). Hung Medien.
9. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH.
10. "Mexicancharts.com – Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten". Hung Medien.
11. "Swisscharts.com – Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten". Hung Medien.
12. "Natasha Bedingfield | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart
13. "British album certifications – Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Unwritten in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
14. "American album certifications – Natasha Bedingfield – Unwritten". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH

External links

• Peter Wade Music – Producer Peter Wade Keusch.