In the week since Whitney Houston’s death, I’ve posted about her 1997 single, “Step By Step” (held in high regard thanks to its Annie Lennox connection) and also compiled a list of the 10 most underrated songs from her impressive catalogue. For the record, of her greatest hits, my favorite Whitney single of the ever is “So Emotional.” (I don’t know why I like it, I just do!)

But as today is Saturday and thus time for Saturdance, I wanted to shine the spotlight on a different side of our dearly departed Whitney: Dance Diva. Among her many impressive achievements, she scored 16 top ten hits on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart. Thirteen of those releases went to #1, giving Whitney an eighth-place ranking among all artists (Madonna is #1 with an unbelievable 40).

Indeed, my greatest love of all is reserved for the many remixes that appeared during Whitney’s nearly three-decade career, as any cursory examination of my iPod would reveal. Some remixes were commercially available, while others were promotional releases meant only for DJs (though you could track them down if you were so driven, and I was). There were also countless white labels of her hits, no surprise when your star shines as brightly as Whitney’s did.

It was a tough task, but I’ve narrowed my favorite Whitney remixes down to the five below.

1. “I Learned From The Best” (HQ2 Club Mix) (iTunes, Amazon MP3)

The Diane Warren-penned revenge ballad from 1998’s My Love Is Your Love sounded best remixed by Hex Hector and Mac Quayle (then working together as HQ2). Their re-rub spent three weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Songs chart in early 2000.

The best part of the HQ2 Club Mix of “I Learned From The Best” is Whitney’s “UH!” near the mix’s start and at the climax of the breakdown, a declaration repeated amid the frenetic synths that follow. The incorporation of Whitney’s breaths into the whole thing is an inspired move too. I will never forget hearing “I Learned From The Best” in the clubs that winter, and though a decade has passed, it’s just as flat-out amazing today as it was back then. I still would kill for a 30-minute mix of it, looped with the HQ2 Dub.

2. “Million Dollar Bill” (Freemasons Club Mix) (iTunes, Amazon MP3)

Whitney sounds like a million bucks on Freemasons’ brilliant mix of what should have been the major single from her 2009 comeback album, I Look To You. Given the number of times I’ve played this on my iPod, it may just be the best remix the UK production duo has ever turned out. It’s absolutely joyful, and the chord progression that references the chorus to her 1986 hit, “How Will I Know,” just puts it over the top. “Million Dollar Bill” was her last #1 dance hit.

As I remarked upon its release, “Our wayward diva is poised to welcomed back to the dance floor as if she’d never left.” “If you feel good, if you’re feeling good, put one hand in the air.” Every time I hear this mix, Whitney’s entreaty to join in proves irresistible.

3. “It’s Not Right, But It’s Okay” (Thunderpuss Club Mix) (iTunes, Amazon MP3)

The Thunderpuss Club Mix of “It’s Not Right, But It’s Okay” (the second single from My Love Is Your Love) put the tribal beats of Chris Cox and Barry Harris on the map. After their peak-hour remix took off in the clubs (including a 3-week run at #1), an edit serviced to radio stations became the definitive version (all apologies to Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, who produced the original track).

The Thunderpuss mix of “It’s Not Right, But It’s Okay” is the one with That Note. Sustained for nearly 15 seconds thanks to a bit of studio wizardry from Cox and Harris, I recall reading an interview in which the duo discussed creating the remix and including that extended note — “You were making a fool of me, ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh….” — which they were mostly confident Whitney had the vocal power to pull off in real life. Whitney would prove their instinct was spot-on in a live performance based on the Thunderpuss remix (for some MTV awards broadcast, maybe?), holding the note like the pro she was.

4. “Love That Man” (Peter Rauhofer Retro Mix) (iTunes, Amazon MP3)

Here’s more evidence that “Love That Man,” from 2002’s Just Whitney is one of the singer’s most underrated songs.

New York City-based DJ Peter Rauhofer, who holds the record for having remixed the most Whitney tracks, a total of seven, turned out two club mixes of “Love That Man.” Of the pair, his Retro Mix resonated most with me. The disco claps reference the funky “old-school love” of the original track, while the radiating synths at the remix’s base — running into red, dallying with distortion — are irresistibly propulsive. Also a highlight: the post-breakdown repetition of “Always, always, always, always, always, always, always there!” at 5:19.

5. “Try It On My Own” (Thunderpuss Club Anthem Mix) (promo vinyl only, via Amazon resellers)

“It’s Not Right, But It’s Okay” was the first Whitney Houston track Thunderpuss remixed, but its monster success ensured it wouldn’t be the last. Together, Chris Cox and Barry Harris reworked five different Whitney singles. Here, they used their magic touch to transform the schmaltzy ballad from Just Whitney (sorry, Babyface) into the self-empowerment anthem it was meant to be.

Released in 2003, “Try It On My Own” was one of the final remixes Thunderpuss submitted before going their separate ways that year. The song’s title and theme couldn’t have been more perfect, and the mix serves as triumphant finale to the production duo’s six-year collaboration.

Listen to this mix, paying close attention to Whitney’s words, and if you don’t feel anything is possible in your life afterward, there’s no hope for you.

Wanna fight over my five? Let me know which of Whitney’s remixes you feel are her very best, and how you’d rank your faves.