"Do What You Gotta Do" is the title of a song written by guitarist Pat Flynn and recorded by the New Grass Revival

New Grass Revival

New Grass Revival was an American progressive bluegrass band founded in 1971, and composed of Sam Bush, Courtney Johnson, Ebo Walker, Curtis Burch, Butch Robins, John Cowan, Béla Fleck and Pat Flynn. They were active between 1971 and 1989, releasing more than twenty albums as well as six singles....

 for their 1989 Capitol album Friday Night in America

Friday Night in America

Friday Night in America is the final studio album by progressive bluegrass band New Grass Revival, which was released in 1989.-Track listing:# "Friday Night in America" # "You Plant Your Fields"...

. The song was also recorded by American country music artist Garth Brooks

Garth Brooks

Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...

. It was released in January 2000 as fourth and final single from the 1997 album, Sevens

Sevens (album)

Sevens is the seventh studio album by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released on November 25, 1997, and debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, and on the Top Country Albums chart. The album also topped the Country album charts in Britain for several months and crossed over into the...

. The song reached number 13 on the U.S. Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs

Hot Country Songs

Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...

) charts and peaked at number 18 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart.

Background

The song was issued over two years after the albums release by Capitol Records

Capitol Records

Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...

. This was due to a parcel of tepid reviews and soft sales for Garth Brooks side project, Chris Gaines

Chris Gaines

Chris Gaines is a fictional alternative rock persona created as an alter ego for Garth Brooks to explore rock and roll styles far removed from his success as a country singer....

.

Critical reception

Deborah Evans Price, of Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

magazine reviewed the song favorably, calling it a "high-energy, uptempo, and buoyed by tasty fiddle and crisp, clean production." She goes on to say that the "positive message and infectious melody should make it a quick radio favorite." On Brooks' performance she says that it is "personality-packed" and "full of conviction and passion."

Chart performance

"Do What You Gotta Do" debuted at number 61 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the chart week of January 15, 2000.

Chart (2000)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks	13
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	69
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	18