How do I use a Starbucks iTunes free Pick of the Week song card?

I have one of those same cards and was also intrigued by the album. I mean, I know both musicians well, and am in particular a fan of Marsalis, who is one of the strongest jazz musicians in the industry. But teaming them up?

On the other hand, the buzz in Variety was very strong and they're not only both solid musicians with an amazing string of hits behind them, but they also command the very best in studio musicians as backup too, so whatever they've created, I'm sure it'll sound lush and wonderful.

But why guess? Let's download a song!

If you look on the back of the card, it has a unique code imprinted on the bottom. Mine says:

(I'm guessing it won't work for you if you want to try it, by the way)

But where to plug it in and get the song?

Turns out that you need to go to the iTunes Store via ... surprise ... iTunes the application. If you don't already have it on your computer, you can grab a copy at Apple's iTunes download area.

Once you've got it running, look on the left side:

The second section is labeled "Store". That's what you want. Click on "iTunes Store" and after a moment or two you'll see this (or something quite similar):

The key link is on the right side, not particularly visible with all the fun graphics: "Redeem". Here, I'll highlight it:

Click on that, and you'll see:

Here's where you need to carefully enter the complicated code on the back of the card. Once you're done, click "Redeem" and, once you've logged in to the Apple Store (or set up an account if you don't have one, just takes a minute), you'll see:

And now, if you dig around and search for Marsalis or Nelson, you'll find the song in your music library, ready to copy to your iPod or listen to on your computer or AppleTV. Not too hard after all.

And you know what? Nelson and Marsalis aren't half-bad together. Nice bluesy jazz with Willie's rough voice. Nice. Maybe I will get the rest of the album...