Suddenly, it was spring-time for singer Bobby Brown. At 12:05 yesterday morning, Brown was released from the Broward County jail. Wife Whitney Houston and comedian Chris Rock - plus a crowd several hundred strong - were there, waiting outside."Bobby, we've come to get you," Rock yelled through a megaphone while filming it all for his HBO show. Rock whipped up the crowd with the chant "B-R-OOO-W-N: Let Bobby out of jail again," and strains of "Kumbaya."

But Houston - who had been waiting for her bad-boy hubby in a white stretch limo - yelled "Bobby Brown" several times, then jumped into his arms, wrapping her legs and arms around him.

"It was a Kodak moment," says sheriff spokesman Jim Leljedal.

Meanwhile, one of Rock's producers, dressed as a nun, prayed. And a helicopter hovered overhead with a "Free Bobby" sign. Rock plans to air the footage for the season premiere of his HBO show, on Aug. 14.

Brown had been in jail since May 10 after violating probation following a 1996 conviction for drunken driving. In the end, he got 10 days off for good behavior.

"We had no problems with him at all," reports Leljedal. "He's welcome in Broward County, but we hope he never returns to our jail."