Don't Stop...

Until its release, the song was only known from its presence on a rough soundcheck tape recorded before a performance in Hong Kong "about 15 years ago", as revealed by Gallagher in a tweet on the eve of its release.^[1] He explained that he had discovered the song on a seemingly blank CD while rummaging through old material during the COVID-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom.^[7][8] Gallagher believed the song was "lost forever", suggesting that this soundcheck tape was the only existing copy.^[8]

Further reports in Pitchfork and Entertainment Weekly noted that Gallagher said the demo CD itself carried no date, leaving it unclear whether the Hong Kong soundcheck tape pre-dated the demo or vice versa.^[9][10] In a 2021 interview with Record Collector, later reported by Radio X, Gallagher said that the demo had originally been set aside for a shelved Oasis compilation covering the band's 2000s output, with a bonus disc planned for unreleased material.^[11]

A re-recorded version of the song, featuring additional instrumentation, was included in the deluxe edition of Council Skies (2023), the fourth studio album by Gallagher's band, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.^[3][4]

Reviewing the 2020 release, Petridis described the song as a Noel-sung, largely acoustic performance whose guitar figure nodded to the Beatles' "Dig a Pony", and suggested that the demo most likely dated from the mid-2000s, around the period of Don't Believe the Truth or Dig Out Your Soul.^[2] In NME, the song was compared to Oasis acoustic favourites such as "Talk Tonight" and "Half the World Away", with the magazine presenting it as an optimistic entry in Gallagher's songwriting catalogue.^[12]

Gallagher announced the song on 29 April 2020 and released it online at midnight, presenting it as a surprise lockdown-era release for fans while they were confined at home during the pandemic.^[1][7] The BBC's Mark Savage described the song as "a laid-back, acoustic ballad ... sharing its DNA with classic Oasis songs" as "Stop Crying Your Heart Out" and "Don't Look Back in Anger". The Guardian also reacted positively to the song, called it "one of Noel Gallagher’s best latter-day efforts".^[2] NME likewise responded warmly, likening the song's feel to the reflective acoustic side of Gallagher's earlier work.^[12] Commercially, the single reached number 10 in Scotland and number 80 on the UK Singles Chart, while also peaking at number 13 on the Official Singles Downloads Chart and number 14 on the Official Singles Sales Chart.^[5][6]

In response to the announcement, Gallagher's then-former Oasis bandmate and younger brother, Liam, tweeted, "Oi tofu boy if your [sic] gonna release old demos make sure im [sic] singing on it and boneheads [sic] playing guitar on it if not it's not worth a wank as you were LG x".^[8] Liam also accused Noel of overdubbing the raw recording in a recording studio, calling it a "PR stunt", although The Independent suggested that Liam had claimed to have been "disappointed" at not featuring on the single.^[13] Despite this, he later stated that he thought the song was "not a bad tune".^{[14][non-primary source needed]}

A re-recorded version of "Don't Stop...", credited to Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, was issued on the deluxe 2CD edition of Council Skies, released on 2 June 2023.^[3][15] On the deluxe edition track listing, the song appears as the opening track on the bonus disc.^[3]