Martinez percussionist Brian Wilson (who performs in a duet and with local favorites the Hopeful Romantics) received a surprise Thursday at his 50th birthday party at Roxx on Main, when several members of the party donned headbands and began snapping their fingers.
The finger-snappers headed across the street to Main Street Plaza, where Danny White of Good Stuff Guitar Shop waited patiently by a boom box. When he hit "play," the song Wake Me Up Before You Go Go by Wham! (a huge hit from the 1980s) began to play, and the group began to dance.
It was the first official flash mob of Martinez.
The dance was organized by Alyssa Rose, the lead server at Roxx and a tenacious organizer who cajoled several unwilling participants into joining in the mob.
In the end, a delighted Wilson decided that he, too, would dance along as the mob did a birthday encore.
It was a great time for everyone involved.