Final answer:
Songs during the 1920s-1940s typically followed a sequence from composition to live performance, recording, and finally, release.
Step-by-step explanation:
The popular songs from the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression of the 1930s, and the wartime 1940s generally followed a process from inceptive idea to widespread public acclaim. The correct sequence for a song to go from inspiration to hit during these historical periods was: composition, then live performance, followed by recording, and lastly, the release. This mirrors the journeys of influential musical theatre works and songs by iconic composers and lyricists like George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, and Oscar Hammerstein, during this era of dynamic cultural output.