The song's lyrics revolve around themes of perseverance and emotional resilience, with lines like "Oh me, oh my, I'm running out of batteries / I'm hanging from a ladder / The tears you cry are only meant to flatter me." The chorus urges, "Dream on / Was that songbird singing? / You got to sing along."
The B-side of the single is "Shoot a Hole into the Sun," a nearly 8-minute remix of another album track, "If I Had a Gun...," stemming from a scrapped collaboration with the electronic duo Amorphous Androgynous.
The official music video, directed by Mike Bruce, depicts a dramatic boxing match in a black-and-white style, with Noel Gallagher appearing as the referee. It stars actors Zoë Bell, Troy Mittleider, and Omar Doom, adding a cinematic flair to the song's energetic vibe.
Upon release, "Dream On" achieved moderate chart success in 2012, peaking at No. 52 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 3 on the UK Indie Chart, No. 39 in Scotland, and No. 44 on Belgium's Ultratip chart (Wallonia).
Reviews noted its catchy, Oasis-like qualities while highlighting Gallagher's solo evolution.