In reply to the original question about a song "sung by a male artist and was about arriving in California, having had to leave Cape Breton for work..."
A couple songs come to mind, but none actually specify 'California'.
One is by Allister MacGillivray: You'll Be Home Again. A nice version is found on 'Song for the Mira' ... Amazon has it.
Another is Buddy MacDonald's song about leaving CB with a couple of buddies and heading to find work 'out west', but it all takes place in Canada. It's called 'Tarsands Lament', and you can buy it at www.castlebaymusic.com
The last is the song I wrote about my father leaving CB to find work, called 'Feels Like Home', but since it's never been recorded, it can't be that one :)

Moran Dan