"Gotta Get Thru This" put Daniel Bedingfield on the pop map as a great producer and artist. His brand of pop unashamedly infused retro Michael Jackson with recent pop trends. Who could forget "James Dean" or "If You're Not the One"? Everyone knew that that guy had an ear for good music, but it was unlikely that his sister would rise due to his success.
Natasha Bedingfield is one sister nobody saw coming. This New Zealander climbed onto her brother's rocketing success and got a contract. Surprisingly her effort, Unwritten, is not a pawn in the record industry's game is it would be.
The album approached pop with the same vigor as her brother's. Her buoyancy on tracks such as the hit single "The Words" make it a treat to listen to. Other tracks rely on a strong message and a catchy zeal like "Single" - an anthem to every lonely heart.
Standouts include the heartbreaking "I Bruise Easily" and the title track.
The lyrical tongue-and-cheek of "Frogs and Princes" is, for the lack of a better word, cute.
Unwritten is a sweet effort. Approach it with no pre-conceived notions.

In 2001 Daniel Bedingfield burst onto the scene with his debut single "Gotta Get Thru This" which became a massive UK No.1 single. His album followed similar success throughout 2002 and 2003 selling more than 1 million copies. Then in 2004 as he took a break to record his new album, his young sister, Miss Natasha Bedingfield, also burst onto the scene! A lot of people were sceptical to begin with as they thought she was just cashing in on the already-famous Bedingfield name, but the music soon spoke for itself. In the UK Natasha has experienced amazing success in 2004 and I'm sure this success will only continue into 2005.

After the Top 3 success of her first two singles in the UK, Natasha released her debut album "Unwritten." It went straight to No.1 in September 2004. The album itself is, for a first album, very good indeed. The music has many elements to it that make it a memorable debut, including pop, soul, rock, indie, and dance. Natasha incorporates all these themes into the songs on this album to create something that isn't just your typical pop album, but something a little bit different - a little bit left of the middle. A lot of artists do this and can't still appeal to the mass public, but Natasha has done it effortlessly here.

The album opens with the superb "These Words." The second single to be released from the album in August 2004, this song went straight to No.1 in the UK and has become one of the year's most played radio hits. It's not hard to see why because it's a breezy, upbeat song that just flows in the beautiful choruses with Natasha's gritty vocals. "Single" is the next song, and was Natasha's debut single. She sings of being independent and on her own, but we've heard all this before from Destiny's Child, Christina, Britney, etc. The song itself is good but it never really attracted my attention. "I'm A Bomb" is much better, thankfully, and is definitely worthy of being a single. The word play and clever lyrical style works well here along with the hard and loud guitars. "Unwritten" is the third and latest single to be released from the album and became a big Top 10 hit. It's a light and breezy song with a very memorable backing. The choir works very well and the chorus is also very well constructed. Someone said this sounded a bit like an Alanis Morissette song. It doesn't.

"I Bruise Easily" is another beautiful song and has a very chilled, mid-tempo feel to it. I love the beat on this song and the piano is very emotional. Natasha sings of how she's very fragile in the middle, despite her racy, brave exterior. It's a really nice song because you can relate to it very well, and the way her vocals go all breathy in the chorus makes you feel this. "If You're Gonna..." totally switches back to Natasha's daredevil nature in a fast, loud rocky pop song about taking risks in life. I love the chorus where she sings, "If you're gonna jump, then jump far! Skip the 'um' and 'ahh.' If you wanna hit the high notes then you gotta be a Diva!" The way her voice rises on 'Diva' is so funny! "Silent Movie" is another fantastic song, but it took quite a lot of listening to get me to like it. It opens very strangely like something out of an old silent movie from the 1920's where all the screen is dull and crackly, with a yellow tint to it. The chorus soon kicks in and is very refreshing. "We're All Mad" is another superb song with a catchy beat that's similar to track 4. The chorus is very strong as is the case with most of the other songs here, and the build up to it is probably the best part of the song.

"Frogs & Princes" is a really strange song that sounds like something right out of a Disney movie set in an alternative universe. The blips and beeps work very well, and the chorus is really swift. That's the only way I can really describe it because, unfortunately, it sounds like something from the Spice Girls album "Forever!" The next song, "Drop Me In The Middle," features Bizarre from D-12 and just doesn't really fit with the album. The song itself is alright, but I really hate D-12 and just to have him on an album doesn't work. Plus, Natasha makes completely different music to him and his band. "Wild Horses" thankfully is a much better song. She sings about wanting to go out into the big wide world and be free of negativity, but it's easier said than done. Horses are used as the metaphor to put this across, and I think she does it very well. "Size Matters" is a jaunty little pop number about the size of a man's heart and how he uses it. It's a bit of a corny song, because we all know what people refer to when they talk about a man's size! "Peace Of Me" closes the album but it's not a very memorable song.

OVERALL GRADE: 7/10

I'd definitely recommend this album to people who like artists such as Nelly Furtado and Alicia Keys. It has an 'alternative' appeal to it, but not really alternative to the point of abstraction from, say, Bjork or Tori Amos. I've still yet to buy an album by Daniel, and I really want his debut because I loved all the six singles that were released from it. Natasha's a better artist in my opinion because I really love this album. I can't see myself listening to it in say ten year's time, but who knows? Make up your own mind - everyone's talking about her.

So I was walking around the music store where I work, and I found this just sitting there, and I was like "Oh...Daniel's sister!" I didn't own Daniel's CDs, because the music isn't quite what I like. I listened to it, and wow...I was very surprised. She's very different than her brother, but you can tell they are siblings...they have the same accent which is actually really cool.

The music is kind of R&B and goes along the same kind of Europop/rock kinda stuff. Jeanette is a good example of what she sounds like, but she's unique just the same. It's bouncy and it's hard in places, but it has kind of this hip hop feel.

My favorite tracks on the album are "If Your Gonna" which is more rock than anything. It's hard for her album, and it's something I can dance to as well. Another favorite is "These Words" of course, is good. It sounds like PINK. I tell you, she really does sound like Pink for more American audiences.

So anyway, I love this album, it's good, it's Eurorock/pop stuff. If you're into that, pick this up. If you like Daniel, then pick this up, because it's his sister...come on!

Natasha and Daniel Bedingfield once covered "Ain't Nobody" together and it was a true tour de force, not to mention a brilliant showcase for their talents, so I expected much from Natasha's debut album.

I was disappointed, needless to say, when I beheld the crap music and even worse lyrics; after all, "These Words" was a huge hit and "Unwritten" is a rather pleasant number. I quickly found out that, besides those two, there are maybe two or three more songs that do not rouse paramount ire and maximum five out of eleven decent songs in an album is bleak.

Bedingfield's biggest problem is that she writes her own songs and even the help that she receives is insufficient. When a sentence like "I want to do all kinds of stuff" crosses the musical spectrum, things get drastically sadder. Her lyrics are so abysmal that I nigh feel pity for her.

The music is no better. Only the singles - and "Silent Movie" or "I Bruise Easily," tops - provide a relief. "I'm a Bomb" and "Single" are poppy and terrible, especially considering what a good voice she has. "Wild Horses" is plain embarrassing. "If You're Gonna Jump..." suffers both lyrically and musically, but not enough to make it truly unbearable. "Frogs and Princes" is a disaster from all directions, heading into the "I'm a Bomb" and "Single" territory.

I thoroughly enjoy her voice and think she has incredible potential, but because of her ambitions, her debut is so god-awful, she better hope it passes under the radar. Bedingfield has to realize that she needs to evolve as an artist before she takes up songwriting again.

this album, i have to say is a good album, it takes you through a journey from the first track "these words", which is my favourite in the album, to the last one "piece of me" which is my second favourite. It is a mix of pop and r'n'b, and there is some rapping too on songs like "drop me in the middle" in which Bizzare from D-12 sings along with natasha.
I wouldn't give this album a perfect 5/5 because eventhough she wrote pretty much all the songs herself, it sometime sounds too manufactured like Britney Spears (If anyone told you this album sounds like Britney, it doesn't!). Another reason why i wouldn't give this album a perfect mark is because in some songs it gets too cheesy. I bought this album because of I heard "these words" and the song was supper happy, but this album is not all happy, in songs like "I Bruise Easily" or "Wild Horses", Natasha gets sad and I'm sorry to say, cheesy.
Overall, I think its a very good album.
here's the rundown of how good the songs were:
1. These Word- 10/10 my favourite!!!
2. Single- 9/10 the first single of the album, it's alright...
3. I'm a Bomb- 8/10 It's a fun song
4. Unwritten- 10/10 This is such a good song! it makes you wanna jump up and down!
5. I bruise Easily- 7/10 It's kinda cheesy, This is the fourth single of the album and probably my least fav.
6. If you'r gonna... - 9/10 very much like "I'm a bomb" its fun
7. Silent Movie- 10/10 Its such a good song!
8. We're all mad in our own way- 10/10 eventhough it's kinda cheesy sounding, I love the lyrics and its just so good!
9. Frogs and Princes - 8/10 It's an alright song, not my favourite though...
10. Drop Me in The middle - 10/10 This is one of the best songs in the album i have to say, its so much fun and I love Bizzare's rapping on this song, "... I might as well dye my head green and join NoDoubt"
11. Wild Horses - 6/10 This song sounds like Celine Dion, its pretty crapy if you ask me... but I still like it
12. Size Matters - 9/10 THIS SONG IS NOT ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK IS ABOUT!! "size matters and not how you feel, I'm talking about your heart and what you do with it"
13. Piece of Me- 10/10 This song is a very good song...
The thing is, she is super famous in Europe and not known at all in North America. She's really good she should get some spotlight here and everyone will love her!