One of the most impressive vocal performances of 1992 probably has to be Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You”. But since that’s the obvious answer, we’ve picked out three others that were just as impressive. “Emotions” by Mariah CareyIn March 1992, Mariah Carey recorded an MTV Unplugged album, mostly in response to critics who felt she couldn’t replicate her vocal range live. Rumors swirled that she was a studio musician, and her whistle notes specifically came under scrutiny. But with her MTV Unplugged performance, Carey proved that she really did have the range.She opened the live session with “Emotions”, immediately putting her voice to work. The vocal runs right at the beginning warmed the audience up, but she soon hit her first whistle note. She made each one look effortless, of course, and jumped from low to high registers with ease. With “Emotions” as an opening song, Carey put the rumors to bed immediately. “No Ordinary Love” by SadeSade released Love Deluxe in October 1992, and later, a concert film recorded in San Diego. Her live performance of “No Ordinary Love” from the concert film features her smooth, sultry vocal delivery backed by unusually intense guitar. The blend of Sade’s soulful voice with intermittent shredding makes this a uniquely impressive rendition of “No Ordinary Love”.Sade is typically associated with smooth R&B, neo-soul standards, and romantic jazz influences. All of that is present on “No Ordinary Love” live in San Diego, but there’s something even more ethereal about her vocals that isn’t captured in a studio recording. Hearing Sade perform live is more of a spiritual experience than anything else.“Oceans” by Pearl Jam“Oceans” first appeared on Pearl Jam’s debut album Ten, but it also opened their MTV Unplugged session in March 1992. The live performance has Eddie Vedder traveling between low and unusually high registers, and features some expressive vocalizations near the end. While “Oceans” isn’t one of Pearl Jam’s go-to signature songs now, it’s still a worthy track. The variance in Vedder’s vocals is impressive in itself, as grunge wasn’t known for having a ton of vocal diversity. Stylistically, there were a lot of standouts, but many vocalists typically stayed in the lower register. Here, Vedder shows that he’s not beholden to that, giving the song texture and emotion.Photo by Ke.Mazur/WireImageThe post 3 of the Most Impressive Vocal Performances of 1992 appeared first on VICE.